


Arcane Academy

by bakedsweetpotato



Category: Ocean's 8 (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Elementary School, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Mutants, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Angst, Crossover, F/F, Fluff, Magic, Mutant Powers, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2019-02-11
Packaged: 2019-09-26 01:11:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 32,851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17132201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bakedsweetpotato/pseuds/bakedsweetpotato
Summary: Debbie gets invited to join a school for children with abilities and meets Lou, a playful rebel with a penchant for fire and Debbie herself.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a Japanese anime called Gakuen Alice. I thought the Ocean's 8 ladies would be great in that AU.

Debbie Ocean is three the first time she hears about Arcane Academy and she loves every bit of it. Her mom tells her about the baby blue flowers peppered along the walkways, the singing birds and laughing trees where her father teaches, and Debbie is enraptured. She pleads to go, but her mother reminds her gently that it's not time yet. She tells Debbie that for the next six years, then dies, holding hands with Debbie's father as their car skids off the road one night, wet from rain, and plunges straight into the Toluca River. They sink to the bottom, taking Debbie's brother and the rest of her entire world with them. Her paternal grandfather takes her in. He lives alone too, and they make the best company for each other for the years after the tragedy. Debbie heals, slowly but surely, under the tender care of her aged, slightly quirky, mostly wise grandfather. She's eleven when she hears about the Academy for the first time since her parents' death. It comes in the form of a letter from the school itself, addressed directly to her and inviting her to enrol. Her grandfather congratulates her with the tightest hug and kiss atop her head, but she has no idea what for. She's perfectly fine in her current school, why would she make a switch when the new school year had just begun two months ago? Sure, she's closed in on herself and lost all her friends after the incident, but that's just part and parcel of growing up isn't it?

"It's time for you to go, young one."

"I don't want to, grandpa." Debbie whines, though it's been her dream since she was little. It just reminds her too much of her parents now. "It's in New York, that's too far away."

"It's not like it's in China," he chuckles as he brushes Debbie's long chestnut hair.

"It might as well be."

He sighs endearingly. "Your parents both attended that school. It was where they met, Deb. Wouldn't you like to experience it all for yourself?"

Debbie considers this, but huffs. "It's already two months into the school year; I don't want to be that one new transfer kid. Maybe I'll apply next year."

"You are called when it is the right time for you. You cannot wait, Debbie. Next year might be too late. You are gifted, like your parents, and this school will teach you how to control those gifts. Unattended, they could get out of hand."

"What are you talking about, grandpa? What gifts?"

He leans in, eyes twinkling. "Abilities, Debbie," he breathes, excited. "You're one of the powered ones."

Debbie frowns in complete puzzlement, looking down at her bare hands like she expects something to grow out of them. Nothing does.

"I don't have powers, grandpa. I think you need to lie down."

He swats her tentative hands away aggressively. "Deborah Ocean, don't you patronise me." He points a warning finger at her. "It's true. Your parents were both gifted with wonderful abilities, just like your beautiful grandmother was."

"Even if I believe you, what could my abilities be? I mean, I've never experienced anything... magical..."

"You will find it when you expect it the least and need it the most, my dear. Be patient and have faith. Until you figure it out, go to the school and you will meet many more just like you."

Debbie sighs, pouting at her grandfather but knowing he's not giving her a choice. "I don't even know how to enrol. Do I send a letter back?"

"Your Uncle Eugene is the principal for the high school senior division. You should be enrolling in the elementary school branch, but I think he's the one responsible for recruiting new students across both the elementary and high school branches. We could just give him a call to confirm your enrolment."

"I didn't know that Uncle Eugene's the principal."

"One of them," her grandfather clarifies, "it's a big school, they take in children of almost all ages."

"But grandpa," Debbie protests again, "I can't just leave you here in Florida and move to New York. Why don't you come with me?"

"Silly girl. You'll be staying in the school dormitory. Why would I move all the way there to live on my own when I already have this beautiful house here?" Debbie looks around at the familiar furniture around them. "Don't you worry my little petal. The Academy will take good care of you. I'll drop you out of your current school and buy you a plane ticket for tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?!" Debbie asks, incredulous, staring at her grandfather like his eyeballs have fallen out of their sockets.

"You're a wee thing, how much could you possibly have to pack Deborah? Besides, I'm meeting a friend for lunch the next day so I'm afraid tomorrow is the only day I'll have to send you to the airport."

"There are many more days after that, you know."

"No no no. Too late, Deb. They're all too late. It's settled then. Pack your bags."

It's a mad rush. Debbie nearly fumes at her grandpa for it. She rummages through the house, picking up keepsakes and photos along with her clothes and other necessities, folding them neatly into a shiny black luggage so big she could probably fit in it if she curled herself up. Her grandfather smiles wistfully as he watches her, a distant yet affectionate look in his eyes, and Debbie tries not to think about how much she's going to miss him while she's away for the semester. She reconciles herself with the fact that there's only three or so months left of the term before she'll be right back here, listening to her grandfather's elaborately creative stories and unparalleled life advice. A bit of a change might be good, she tries to persuade herself. Truth of the matter is, she somehow always knew she'd end up at the Academy, that it'd be futile to fight it. It's all her parents used to talk about, the anticipation of the day that Debbie or Danny would be called, as if it was an inevitability, just a matter of time. That night, Debbie crawls into bed after dinner and a long walk around the neighbourhood with her grandfather - their usual - and lies awake staring at the ceiling. Something inside her buzzes noisily, anxiety or excitement, she's not entirely sure. She closes her eyes, focusing on her own rhythmic breathing, and eventually falls into a dreamless sleep.

"Get up Debbie! The plane won't be waiting around for you, I say."

Debbie groans, twists in the bed and pulls the sheets over her head to drown out her grandfather's yelling.

"Deborah Ocean, if you miss that flight you're taking a bus."

Debbie shoots out of bed. "You would make me take a bus from here to New York?"

"You bet I will! Now get in that shower and get yourself ready. We're leaving in thirty minutes."

The sun is brilliant and beautiful, beaming down at Debbie so brightly she has to lift her hands to shield her eyes.

“You won’t get much sun in New York,” her grandfather suddenly says when they’re twenty minutes into the drive. She tilts her head towards him, studies his tight facial features.

“No I won’t. I hope the weather isn’t too bad over there. Not that I’ll be out of my room much anyway.”

He smiles, glancing over at Debbie to make eye contact. “You never know, Deb. Your father became a different person when he started at the Academy. A good kind of different. More at ease with himself, more sure, stronger. I think it’s the birds of a feather flocking together kind of thing, brings out the best in people, you know.”

Debbie hums mindlessly. It still felt foreign to her, the idea of jumping the gun into an altogether new environment without her grandfather, the one person who’s been there for her through every horrible thing in her life. Of course she’ll write letters - all the letters in the entire world - but it doesn’t change the fact that she’ll be hours and hours away physically, unable to crawl into his bed when the nights get particularly hard to sleep through, like last night. They pull up to the airport. Debbie hasn’t been here since her parents last took her and her brother to Europe for a holiday. They used to travel all the time, at least whenever her father was able to. Her mother always reminded them to treasure the limited time they had with their father because he stayed at the Academy for most of the year. He loved the school and the children so dearly, as he’d hoped Debbie and Danny’s future teachers at the Academy would love them too. It’s a big responsibility, he used to say with a smile, but insisted it was well worth every bit of effort to see the students grow and flourish.

Her grandfather takes her free hand while she drags her luggage with the other, never being the type to baby Debbie by doing everything for her. They get through the short flight comfortably enough, sleeping through most of it. They take a cab to the Academy, and while they’re in the cab she hears her grandfather ring her uncle, notifying him that they’ll be arriving soon. He promises to send someone to pick Debbie up from the gates.

Debbie tries to familiarise herself with the scenery throughout the cab ride. The big, tall buildings looming over them in a gloomy sky a stark difference from the trees and grass in sunny Florida. She’ll lose her tan, Debbie realises in disappointment. Still very much engaged in an internal debate about the pros and cons of this move, she doesn’t even realise it when the cab driver pulls up outside a large metal gate.

“We’re here. Arcane Academy,” the driver announces.

They hop off, her grandfather reminding the driver to wait while they talk so he can do a round trip back to the airport for his return flight. Debbie grabs her luggage and painstakingly lifts it out from the boot.

The huge gate is sandwiched between equally tall yellow-brown brick walls, well-seasoned by years and years of life, bordering what Debbie imagines is the entire school ground. It’s a hefty amount of space, and Debbie suddenly feels very small just looking up at the ancient architecture.

Beside her, her grandfather inhales sharply then pushes the air out in a deep sigh. “All set?”

Debbie nods, looking up at her grandfather’s sad eyes. She wraps her thin arms around his midsection, tiptoes and presses her face into his chest firmly. He chuckles.

“I’ll miss you too, kid.”

Debbie starts to cry, sobbing into his grey t-shirt, a decidedly bad choice because the tears stain every bit of fabric they touch.

“Oh, come now,” he chuckles, holding back tears himself. “You’ll have the best time of your life in there.”

“I’ll come back. Once semester’s done, I’ll ask Uncle Eugene to buy a me a ticket back for the break. He won’t mind, will he?” Debbie is insistent, pushes herself back so she can stare into his eyes with her own determined, fiery ones.

Her grandfather smiles fondly at her, a twinge of pity and pride in his expression. He hugs her tightly one last time, then walks her to the gate as it starts to creak open, revealing a young woman clad in a simple black dress and an aged man in a polo t-shirt and slacks.

“Hi! Deborah Ocean?”

Debbie nods, still sniffling.

The woman studies Debbie’s little face and puffy red eyes, smiling kindly. “Nice to meet you Deborah. I’m Daphne Kluger, one of the elementary school teachers. Students usually call me Ms Daphne. This is Daryl, he’ll take your bags to your room.” She says, gesturing to the man beside her. The man smiles, takes Debbie’s belongings, and leaves. Daphne turns to face Debbie’s grandfather. “You must be Fred,” she says, waits for his confirmation then continues, “pleasure to meet you.”

“Pleasure’s all ours. Well,” he sighs, squeezing Debbie’s shoulders firmly, “I know I’m not allowed past this gate so I’m entrusting my little pearl into your hands Ms Kluger.”

Daphne grins, placing a gentle hand on Debbie’s head.

“She seems like a brilliant young lady, I’m sure she’ll find her place very quickly. Don’t worry Mr Ocean, we’ll watch over her.”

The chuckle he attempts to give comes out more strangled and he reaches out for Debbie’s hand to give her a last reassuring squeeze before letting her go.

“I’ll see you soon, grandpa. Have a safe flight back. I miss you already.”

“I love you, my little flower.”

“I love you too, grandpa.”

Debbie stares after him even as the cab drives off and the gate groans shut. Daphne waits behind her patiently, giving her the space to come to terms with her situation. It takes a while, but Debbie eventually turns around, seeming much more composed than before, and follows closely behind Daphne as she leads her along one of the paths veering towards the right side, running next to the outer wall. As they walk, Daphne tries to make small conversation, mostly talks about herself to fill the silence because she knows people well enough to be able to tell when someone clearly doesn’t want to speak.

They’ve walked quite a distance, just about to veer onto a smaller pathway to the right that leads to the main administrative building when something in Daphne's pocket starts to screech. Debbie jumps at the volume and intensity, but Daphne stands erect, spinning around and studying the walls. Finally, she finds what she’s looking for and takes off. Debbie sprints after her, trying to keep up. She glances around in a frenzy until her eyes settle on something human but not. Through squinting and running to close the distance, Debbie eventually comes to place the figure more clearly in her mind. It's a child, maybe her age - a girl, judging by the skirt - but Debbie can’t be entirely sure with the white-coloured cat mask covering her face. The girl is standing on the edge of the wall, ready to jump off and out the school. Beside her, Daphne swiftly throws something at the kid and a dark smoke bursts out to twine around her body, constricting tighter with every breath. The child seems to convulse, falls backwards, off the wall, towards the grass, still wrapped in smoke, and Daphne rushes forward to catch the body. The smoke dissipates instantly and the kid starts to struggle, pushing against Daphne in weak grunts of protest. Daphne stills, blows softly on the kid’s face until she sags in her arms lifelessly.

Debbie is stunned silent, watches as Daphne lifts the child bridal style and saunters back to her side, continuing their walk to the administrative building. Closer now, Debbie can see the short mop of platinum blonde hair the kid sports, tied down by the strap of the full face mask that still keeps her hidden. Debbie scans the girl, from the forest green tie with gold detailing and white collared blouse that peeks out from the edges of her maroon blazer, to her navy blue pleated skirt and white sneakers. She averts her eyes quickly, trying not to look up the skirt that ends just barely above her knees.

Daphne ushers her into a grand room on the third floor, fully furnished with vintage leather couches, a large Persian rug covering most of the floor, and deep mauve curtains framing long glass windows that open to bright green leaves from the trees out in the courtyard. It must be some kind of waiting room.

“Have a seat,” Daphne says to Debbie as she lays the blonde girl on one of the couches. Even lying horizontally, the girl barely takes up half the seating space. Debbie opts to sit on the opposite couch, facing the unconscious girl. She watches as Daphne leans over, whispering something, then lifts off the cat mask to reveal a pretty, Caucasian girl - porcelain skin and rosy cheeks. Debbie tries to sit up straighter to get a better angle but snaps back immediately when Daphne turns around to face her suddenly.

“I’ll be right back, okay? Just wait here.”

“With her?” Debbie asks uncertainly.

Daphne glances at the blonde then waves Debbie’s worries away with a smile. “She’ll probably be out for a while, you’ll be fine.”

Debbie nods hesitantly, still unconvinced but more curious than fearful. When Daphne leaves, Debbie examines the girl more openly, staring at her unmoving figure. The girl is lean, bordering on thin, a healthy kind of pale, and so beautiful, even with the slight frown etched between her brows. Her expression looks pained and Debbie wonders what was it that Daphne threw at her back there. Something in her stirs, and she feels her fingers twitch involuntarily, itching to smooth the crease across this girl’s forehead, soothe her inner turmoil. Shaking herself out of these unwarranted thoughts, Debbie attempts to divert her attention elsewhere, rising to stand, and studies the room. The walls run high, she’s beginning to think all the walls in this school do, to reach a wide ceiling home to the biggest chandelier she’s ever seen, hanging right above her. If Debbie was a more expressive person, her jaw would certainly have dropped to the floor. Speaking of which, this carpet is possibly the softest thing she’s ever felt. While she wouldn’t have considered her family to be poor - quite the contrary actually - her parents have never been keen on grandeur, teaching Debbie and her brother that there’s no need to attract unnecessary attention by flaunting their wealth. Debbie supposes if what her grandfather says is true, that they had magic powers, it would make sense that they would want to keep a low profile. Within her first hour here, Debbie has seen her teacher trap a child in smoke and knock her out cold - to say that it’s convinced Debbie to reconsider her grandfather’s words would be an understatement.

Debbie makes a full circle, raking her eyes over every inch of the room to land back on the leather couch. The empty leather couch. She freezes.

“Who are you?”

Debbie spins around to face the voice coming from behind. The blonde girl stands before her, leaning against one of the couches across the room, appearing to be slowly regaining her strength.


	2. Chapter 2

“Debbie Ocean,” Debbie replies dumbly. “Who are you?”

The girl studies Debbie, eyes still shifting in and out of focus. With one hard blink, she sobers up, striding towards Debbie - closer, closer - until they are mere inches apart. Her eyes are a light shade of blue, speckled and swirled with grays and a dull kind of shimmer. Debbie stops herself just short of falling straight in.

“That’s close enough,” she orders, trying to sound firm and confident. The girl closes the remaining distance with a smirk, almost nose to nose now. Debbie stands her ground, refusing to back down. They’re about the same height, Debbie realises as they stare into each other’s eyes. It’s harder not to drown in them now. She allows herself some leeway, but the hint of exhaustion in the depth of the girl’s irises pulls Debbie straight out.

“Are you okay?”

The girl frowns, confused.

“Did Ms Daphne hurt you?” Debbie asks more specifically.

The girl frowns deeper, then breaks into a measured smile of intrigue and amusement.

“You’re cute,” she says it like she’s wondering, not entirely certain, so Debbie doesn’t blush. “She can’t be trusted; none of them can.”

“None of who?”

“The teachers,” the girl clarifies.

“And I should trust you?”

The girl laughs. “You’re a big girl, you can make your own choices. I'm just offering friendly advice.” She’s about to say something else, then tilts her head slightly, as if she’s listening for something outside the door. “Gotta go. See you around, Debbie.”

Debbie frowns at the girl stupidly walking away from the door.

“It’s this way out,” Debbie points. The girl spins around and grins smugly, stopping to wink before jumping and falling three stories, back-first out the open window. Debbie runs after her, peering over the edge and down at the pavement where the girl lands safely with a soft thud. She turns back up to lock eyes with Debbie, then the door clicks open and Debbie snaps her head towards the sound. When she returns her gaze to the ground, the girl is gone.

“Where did she go?” Daphne asks, slightly panicked.

Debbie points out the window mutely, feeling very much like an accomplice caught in the act. Daphne clicks her tongue, mutters something under her breath.

“It’s fine,” she sighs eventually, then smiles brightly. “So, are you ready to meet your classmates?”

Debbie shrugs, taking one last glance at the window before following Daphne out. Daphne lists off and points to important places they pass along the way to the elementary education building, like the main outdoor study areas, the enormous central building which apparently holds the library, shops, cafeteria, gym, hall, entertainment rooms and the indoor swimming pool all in one, the boys' dorms, one of the parks, but never actually tours Debbie inside any of them so Debbie isn't sure she's expected to remember. Nevertheless, she tries to nod along with every brief introduction, but in every tree they past, every student Daphne waves at, Debbie finds herself searching for blonde. Despite her shifted attention, she shadows Daphne closely.

“We have the elementary and high school branches. Elementary would be those under 13 and high school are those from 13 to 18,” Daphne explains as they walk down an empty corridor of the elementary building. “Since you’re 11, you’ll be in the upper elementary class for kids from 10 to 12 years old.” They stop outside a glossy wooden door with a see-through glass pane in the top half. A maroon label reads ‘Class B’ in distinct white text.

“This is it. I think the next lesson is in..." Daphne checks her watch, "15 minutes. I’ll introduce you to the class now and you can settle in before your next teacher comes in, all right?”

“Okay, sure.”

When they walk into the room, Debbie’s eyes widen. There’s a girl hovering mid-air, books and stationery floating around the room, and a dancing chair. Guess her grandfather wasn’t crazy after all.

“Muruki, Conan, cut it out. Koa, back in your body and in your seat please,” Daphne grumbles. The girl propels herself to the ground, laughing while another boy, presumably her friend, lowers his raised hands and appears to bring the floating objects down. The animated chair rocks from side to side, stopping beside a sagging body. Something, Debbie’s not sure what, jumps out of the chair and into the body, causing the body to jolt up with a grin.

“Thank you. Now, this is Debbie. She’ll be joining your class for the rest of this year so please give her the warmest welcome, okay?”

There’s a barely audible response of unenthusiastic hums and Daphne sighs. “Gemini, you’re in charge,” she says, addressing an Asian girl seated in the far corner of the first row, who nods politely and gives Debbie a smile warm enough to contrast her cool-toned ash-gray hair. Debbie returns it, then thanks and bids farewell to Daphne. Daphne smiles in response but doesn't leave immediately, instead lingers by the door a little longer than necessary, lifting her eyes to stare at the back of the class with a disapproving frown. Debbie's about to spin around to satisfy her curiosity when the girl appointed in-charge taps her on the shoulder softly. 

“I’m Gemini,” the girl greets with a hand outstretched, “the class president. Welcome to Class B.”

Debbie takes her hand. “Thank you.”

“You can sit behind me, it’s an empty spot.”

The desk looks brand new, as does the chair and everything else in the classroom, but there is a decidedly seasoned smell and feel among the students. It’s weird, Debbie thinks. She should take out some pens, some paper, but Daryl had taken everything from her at the front gate so she turns and pushes herself to sit on the edge of the desk instead, scanning the room and studying the faces.

“So, what do you do, Debbie?”

It’s the flying girl who asks. Debbie raises her brows in question. “What do you mean?”

The girl scoffs. “Abilities. What can you do?”

Debbie stiffens, mind goes blank, and is certain her face reflects it.

“Do you even have any?” the boy who makes things float taunts with a smirk.

“Piss off, you two,” another girl, taller, with dreadlocks and a maroon beanie, spits harshly. “Lay off the new kid.”

For some reason, the bullies do, huffing in annoyance but shutting their mouth. Debbie blinks at the girl who defended her, the closest thing she can get to a thank-you right now, and looks away. She spots a familiar shade and style of platinum blonde in the corner of her vision as her long brown hair sways with the motion of her head-turn. Sure enough, when she does a double take, she meets icy blue eyes and a familiar amused smirk. Debbie feels her heart clench, a shock to her system from finally seeing the girl again after searching for her for over an hour. At least now she knows what - or who - Daphne was glaring at before she left. Debbie lets her gaze linger unabashedly.

“Hi!” a husky, excited voice rasps from beside her, snatching her focus. Debbie’s surprised to see such a low voice coming from one of the shortest kids in the room. “I’m Constance,” the dark-haired Asian girl says. She wears a maroon sweater instead of the blazer that Lou sports.

To her left, her friend shyly introduces herself as Rose. She sounds Irish, has the messiest mop of unruly curls nesting on her head and Debbie is entirely fascinated. The girl appears not to have skin, instead is wrapped head to toe in beige gauze-like fabric where skin should be. Ironically, she shows more ‘skin’ than most of the other students, donning a short-sleeved white collared blouse under a maroon pinafore, cinched at the waist and flaring out to end at her knees. Debbie starts to feel terribly under-dressed in her white shirt and denim shorts. At least she’s got the white top down.

Debbie smiles at them. “Hi, nice to meet you both.”

Constance leans forward, lowering her voice. “Don’t mind Muruki and Conan, they pick on everyone. They’re even worse when Claude is here. We usually just stay out of their way and they mostly leave us alone.”

“Who’s Claude?”

“Their ringleader. He went outside with Cammie after math class, probably to make out behind some dumpster.” Constance rolls her eyes, plopping down on the chair next to Debbie. Rose settles in the one to her right so the three of them are seated in a row.

Debbie notices the thick paperback books on both their desks. Ah, damn. She forgot how annoying it was to start a new year of school. "Can I share textbooks with you for the rest of the day? I haven't had the chance to buy them from the school bookstore yet."

Constance laughs out loud. "Nah, Deb. The school provides the books. On the shelf back there,” she says, throwing her thumb towards the back corner of the class.

Debbie nods appreciatively, relieved. “Great, thanks. And where do I get my uniforms?"

"They're probably in your room. You haven’t been there have you?”

“No, not yet. Ms Daphne took me straight here.”

“Yeah, thought so. All good, we'll take you there later. We have one last class after the next science lesson, but it’s abilities-based so we’ll be splitting up. Do you know where to go?”

Debbie shakes her head in a frown. She doesn’t know what abilities she has yet, if she even has any.

“Just follow me. I’m in Somatics with Ms Daphne. She’ll know where to put you.”

“Okay,” Debbie agrees despite not understanding a word. “Does everybody here have abilities?”

“Mmhm, all sorts. Non-powered people aren't even allowed inside the school gates. Mine’s fox mimicry,” Constance grins as the tip of her nose turns black and furry orange pointed ears grow out from the top of her head, then they slink back. “Rose’s is cloth manipulation - the cloth on her body at least.”

“That’s incredible,” Debbie peers over the top of Constance’s head, intrigued, trying to see where the fox ears have gone.

Constance frowns. “You do actually have an ability right?”

Debbie shrugs. “I don’t know,” she says honestly. “If I do, I have no idea what it is.”

“Were you called to enrol?”

“Yeah, but-”

“They say the administration has someone who can track powered people. If you were invited in, you definitely have powers, you just haven’t experienced them yet.”

“I don’t know, Constance. The person you’re talking about is my uncle. I’m afraid he might have just invited me out of courtesy to my parents.”

“Your uncle works here?”

“Principal of one of the high school divisions.”

“That’s rad, wow. Talk about knowing people in high places.”

Debbie sighs. “It’s not _rad_ if it turns out I don’t actually have any abilities and have to be kicked out.”

Constance purses her lips, shrugs. “Ms Daphne will probably make you take some aptitude tests later. They're meant to trigger some of the more general abilities. It's how I activated mine. Maybe you'll get lucky and kickstart yours.”

Debbie hums, suddenly remembering the blonde girl, and turns to the back of the class, about to ask Constance about her. Just as she moves her head, maroon fills her entire vision. Someone walking past her, so close to her face that Debbie ducks her head back instinctively to avoid getting hit. She looks up from her seat to see a familiar head of platinum blonde hair.

“Lou, Tammy, where are you guys going?” Gemini asks in a sigh, more of a gentle probe than a demand.

The girl she met earlier licks her lips, pressing them together in a smirk. “Out,” she replies sharply.

“Ms Xenia will be here any minute, Lou.”

“Send her my regards,” Lou says nonchalantly, already halfway out the door, followed by another blonde girl, dressed nearly the same as Lou but with a small ribbon-type scarf where Lou’s tie lies, similar in design and colour. It seems every student wears a slight variation of the standard uniform consisting of the school colours: white, maroon, navy blue, forest green and gold. Lou’s friend, Tammy, as Gemini addressed her, carries the cutest little white bunny in the crook of her elbow, one hand draped over it protectively in a soothing caress. Even with just the few seconds of observation, Debbie can’t deny that Tammy is beautiful as well, more feminine than Lou, but somehow seems more stern. Her blonde hair is nearly the colour of pure gold and reaches just past her shoulders, combed neatly and graced with a light blue hairband.

Gemini sighs from in front of Debbie, doesn’t do much more to persuade them to stay, probably knows it’s futile. Muruki and Conan make to leave too, sniggering and laughing at some inside joke, barely sparing the class a second glance. Gemini doesn’t even bother with them.

“Won’t they get in trouble?” Debbie asks. She isn’t entirely opposed to rule breaking, but she’s never skipped class, never seen the point of it.

“Sometimes,” Constance shrugs. “They do it so often it becomes kind of hard for the teachers to keep up.”

Before Debbie has the chance to hum her acknowledgment, an older woman walks through the door. She has her long, wavy brown hair gathered over her right shoulder, half of it pinned up in a loose bun, some pieces falling to aid her thick brown glasses in framing her face.

“Good morning everyone,” she beams, shaking her wrist and glancing at her watch. “My, I suppose it’s nearly afternoon, isn’t it?” She laughs musically and properly looks around the class for the first time. “Ah yes!” she says excitedly, clasping her hands together. “Daphne did tell me we’d be having a new student. Tell me, what is your name dear?”

“Debbie, Debbie Ocean.”

“I see. Well, Debbie, it’s a delight to have you here. I’m Ms Xenia and I teach science. If you're in the special type class you'll see me there too.” She smiles warmly, eyes so bright they look slightly frantic. “Okay! Come on guys, flip your textbooks open. We don’t have all day. Today is all about rocks!” she gestures wildly, flowy floral dress swishing from side to side. “Pebbles, stones, boulders- all from the process of sedimentation, believe it or not. Hundreds of thousands of years ago...”

Debbie keeps her eyes on the woman, but her mind wanders back to the girl she’s finally learned the name of. Lou. How is she even standing and laughing after falling off the school wall, getting trapped and knocked out by a teacher, then plunging back first out a window from the third floor? Debbie starts to speculate that Lou’s ability is probably indestructibility. Being seated right beside the window is never the best idea, Debbie realises, and she sneaks several peeks throughout the lesson. She sees the same pretty, hardy green-leaf trees planted around the building, blue flowers spotted along the walkway just like her mother said, and students strolling by, arms linked and looking much like normal average teenagers, which they are most certainly not. The lesson wraps up quicker than Debbie expected, Ms Xenia dismissing them with the same cheer she’s had since the start of class. Debbie wonders if all the teachers have abilities too, realises with a start that she never even asked her grandfather what abilities her parents had. She mentally notes to add that to the letter she’ll write him tonight.

“Deb, c’mon. Rose wants to get nutella ice cream before types.”

“Types?” Debbie asks, getting up from her seat and re-tucking the front of her shirt into the waistband of her denim shorts.

“Yeah, that's what we call our abilities-based classes. It's the only class where we aren't divided into elementary and high school because we get allocated based on our ability types. There’s five,” Constance explains as they walk out the classroom door. “First one’s the latent type - which is basically all the usual typical superhero abilities like flying, teleportation, fire or water manipulation, super speed, telekinesis, y’know, the common ones. Then there’s the technical type - they create new things, like the invention ability that Nineball has, the mutation of flowers that Juniper has, and chemical manipulation that Ms Willa has. Next, we have somatics. That’s my type. We can physically change or enhance ourselves or other people, or interact with other living creatures. Ms Daphne has the human pheromones ability, Tammy has the animal pheromones ability, and you know what I can do.” Constance winks, wiggling her fox ears that peek out for a second then dive back into hiding. “Then there’s the special type - abilities that can’t be classified under the other categories. Rose is one of them, of course. Koa’s also in there, I don’t know if you remember but he was the one who put his soul into the chair back in class when Ms Daphne first brought you in. He has the ability to possess inanimate objects by transferring his soul into them. The special class kids have the weirdest, coolest abilities. Ms Xenia is one of the special class teachers. She manipulates memories.”

They enter the central building on the first floor, which holds the cafeteria, and Rose makes a beeline for the ice cream stall, leaving Debbie and Constance waiting at the entrance. There's plenty of people speckled throughout the cafeteria, but Debbie's eyes dart instantly to find the magic amidst the normal - an older boy levitating twenty feet above ground to reach for an item that is somehow stuck to the ceiling, then to a little girl half Debbie's age shifting in and out of visibility by the vending machines. It's going to take some getting used to.

“And the last type?” Debbie asks.

“The dangerous type - it’s not just about the type of abilities for this class, it’s also about the strength and control. Only the most powerful kids get put in this category. They have to wear bracelets and earrings and things to restrict their abilities so they don’t get out of hand. Lou’s the only one from our class considered a dangerous type, but there are seniors like a guy who can control people through their shadows, and these twins who can literally start a raging storm with their bare hands. It’s nuts.”

“And what does Lou do?”

Constance quirks an eyebrow at Debbie but doesn't comment on her curiosity. “Fire manipulation.”

“Didn’t you say fire manipulation was under the latent type?”

“It is,” Constance says as Rose comes back to join them, eating her nutella ice cream by tiny spoonfuls from her paper cup. “There's another kid with fire manipulation in the latent class, but his is a tiny spark compared to what Lou can do. Hers is so intense that she’s a threat to herself and others.”

Debbie can’t help the frown that etches itself between her brows. If anything, Lou seemed like the one being threatened, what with Daphne crippling her and using her pheromones to knock Lou out.

“Just stay away from her. Everyone knows the dangerous types are bad news, and Lou’s always skipping classes and talking back to teachers - just not a good crowd to hang around,” Constance adds, as if she can sense Debbie’s indignation for Lou. Debbie purses her lips and shrugs without a proper reply.

“Anyway, each type class has its own gathering spot. Technical classes are in the labs, latent classes can be anywhere with a lot of space, somatics are usually in nature, specials are all over, depending on the students, and dangerous types are far away from everyone, with enough room so that their powers don’t reach the rest of the school population during their training. Some people even say they train after dark, it’s crazy.”

They wave a goodbye to Rose, who diverts onto a different walkway to get to her types class.

“Hey Ms Daphne,” Constance waves in greeting once they reach a little park-like area where Daphne stands in wait. The trees are different here, Debbie notes. There’s a significant increase in flowering plants that tint the air with a deliciously sweet aroma. Daphne returns the greeting cheerfully as more students of all ages start to stream in.

“Hey guys. How're you liking your first day, Debbie?”

“Good. Constance and Rose have been showing me the ropes.”

“That’s great!” Daphne flashes a brilliant smile at Constance. “Now tell me,” she says, eyes falling back on Debbie, “what do you do?”

Debbie chews at her lip and looks at Constance in a moment of discomfort. “Um, I don’t really know what my ability is.”

“Ah, I see. That’s totally fine. Constance was the same when she first joined us, weren't you dear? The school leaders call in students when their abilities just start to activate so sometimes it can take a while before they really show. It could also be because you haven’t had the right chance to use it yet. For example, one of the special type students can breathe underwater. She didn’t realise it because she was always too afraid of drowning to actually get into water. She finally discovered it during swim lessons in gym class here and has loved the water since. So be patient okay? You never know what might set you off. In the meantime, you can take some aptitude tests. They help to trigger some of the latent and somatic type abilities. I’ll help you through it once I give instructions to the rest of the class.”

“Okay, thanks Ms Daphne.”

Debbie stands by the side, only half-listening as Daphne tells the class that they’ll be learning to use their abilities more precisely today. She gives demonstrations to illustrate the difference between sending out a wave of laughing pheromones, which makes the whole class burst into involuntary laughter, and concentrating her pheromone effect onto one particular individual. She chooses a blonde girl from the crowd - it’s Tammy, Debbie realises - and blows softly in front of her face, fingertip on her chin. Tammy’s eyes start to flutter, lids becoming heavy as she looks at Daphne through her lashes with glassy eyes and rosy cheeks. A quiet murmur passes over the class at the show, and it takes several moments even after Daphne has walked away before Tammy’s eyes flicker back into focus. Her breathing visibly quickens as she collects herself silently, swallowing and holding the bunny in her hands closer to her chest. She looks entirely uncomfortable. Debbie frowns, upset on behalf of Tammy at the invasion of privacy. Daphne didn’t even bother asking for permission before using her as a prop. Before she can let her disapproval fester, Daphne has sent the students off to practice on their own and strolls over to Debbie with clasped hands.

“Hm, I suppose we should start with agility. Many abilities enhance speed and dexterity. You definitely look fit,” Daphne declares, giving her a once over not so subtly, “but would you say you’re athletic, Debbie?”

“I guess? I did gymnastics when I was younger, and my brother taught me to play a few sports. It’s been about a year since I’ve really done any of them though.”

“Ooooh,” she drawls, curling her lips into a grin. “All right, try a sprint sweetie. From here to the trees with the purple flowers over there.” Daphne points, and the tree in question is so far away Debbie has to squint to identify it. Still, she nods, bending her knees slightly, gearing herself for a run.

“As fast as you can. Whenever you're ready.”

Debbie takes off, sneakers hitting the pavement and kicking up a cloud of dust with every thud. Sneakers really aren’t build for running, she laughs to herself but pushes through until she nearly crashes into the body of the tree from inertia, palms coming to push against the rough bark to brace for impact. She leans against the wood, panting in shallow breaths to recompose her frantic heartbeat. She half walks, half jogs back to Daphne who waits patiently, giggling at the way Debbie’s chest rises and falls like she’s still struggling to breathe.

“Of course these tests aren’t 100% telling, but from that run I’d say your ability probably isn’t something to do with agility.” The playful grin on Daphne’s face is contagious and despite feeling a slight disappointment at botching the first test, Debbie grins back.

“Okay, what’s next?” she asks, her competitive nature rising to the surface.

Throughout class, Debbie is made to run, jump, punch, kick, yell, and last but not least, concentrate. She spends more than a half hour doing the last one while Daphne goes back to check on her students. As much fun as Debbie’s having - she isn’t really - she finds she’d really like to get a move on, prays that her power will just show itself already. To say that it’s upsetting to sit on the ground and focus on nothing without results would be the understatement of the year. Debbie huffs, annoyed and impatient, the frown glued to her forehead from trying to concentrate only accentuating and escalating her frustration. Her dismay turns quickly into envy and self-doubt when she looks around to see the other students with their flurry of wonderful abilities. Constance crouches on all fours, fox ears, snout, whiskers, tail, the whole nine yards, as she darts around the area with visibly enhanced speed and dexterity, occasionally pausing to sniff the air before nimbly scurrying off in a different direction. Tammy has all the birds in the yard hovering over her, one perched on her little finger as she brings it to nuzzle against her cheek.

She leaves the class downcast and seemingly back at square one, with Constance by her side, trying to assure her that it's just a matter of time before her abilities come to light.

"Just watch," Constance says eagerly as she prances alongside Debbie, "it's probably something jack crazy like time travel or bulletproof skin," she prods at Debbie's skin softly.

Debbie scoffs lightly. "At this point I'll take anything, really."

"Oh, don't be so down. It hasn't even been a day yet."

"True," Debbie chuckles, feeling silly. "Where are we going now?"

"That was our last class for the day, so... early dinner? Types always makes me hungry."

"What about Rose?"

"Phones don't work here and most of us don't have phones anyway so there's really no way to contact her. We'll meet her in the cafeteria if she decides to eat something before going back to her room, but if not we'll see her in class tomorrow."

"What do you mean phones don't work here? Not that I have one - there wasn’t enough time for my grandpa to take me to go get one before I came here."

"Nobody uses phones here, not even the older kids who actually have one. It’s pointless. The school administration - they run a pretty tight ship. Rumour has it they have someone with the ability to disable cell service. They even have someone who creates barriers around the school which allows people to enter but prevents people from leaving. Of course, the person who formed the barriers is probably notified every time anyone even approaches the force-field. Apparently bad things happen when people try to leave without permission. Hardly anyone has ever tried, but they say a number of the dangerous abilities kids have, and even they failed to get through. Word is Lou has tried to escape quite a few times herself. Whatever the barriers are, they must be bad. I mean, she comes into class some days with cuts and bruises and broken bones. It's a good thing our nurses have healing abilities; she's usually back to normal the next day."

Debbie thinks back to when she'd first arrived this morning and saw Lou standing on the perimeter wall. She seemed ready to jump, probably would've if Daphne hadn't incapacitated her. If what Constance said was true, maybe it was a good thing Daphne got a hold of her before she'd made that leap and flown straight into the barrier of doom. At least she managed to get away from Daphne relatively unscathed.


	3. Chapter 3

"Why aren't we allowed to leave?"

"We are, when we're going on an excursion or something, with adult supervision. We just aren't allowed to leave without permission. The school doesn't want to risk us using our abilities in front of non-powered people because you never know how the public will react. And the dangerous types are too strong and unpredictable to be around civilians on their own. The barrier protects both us and the people outside."

They arrive back at the cafeteria, strolling around the stalls to decide on what to eat. The place has every cuisine Debbie could think of - Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Western, Greek. They settle for Mexican, but just as Debbie pulls out a few bills, Constance chuckles.

"Those won't work here."

"Hm?"

Constance fishes out a little pouch from inside her pocket and opens it to take out a gold coin. She hands it to Debbie who flips it around in her palm, studying it. There's a big A engraved in the center and floral swirls along the border.

"We have our own currency in here. They're called Arcane coins, but we just call them silver and gold coins. One gold coin is equivalent to ten silver coins. We get allowance from the school based on our performance. Academics, character, attendance, responsibility, all that good stuff. At the end of every term, we get an overall grade and that determines how much we get every week for the next term. Well, that's unless we do something crazy that makes them drop or raise our grade on the spot. It's happened before." Constance doesn't elaborate, takes the gold coin back from Debbie and hands it to the cashier with a smile, offering to pay for both their meals. "Grade A students get 10 gold coins a week, B students get 7, C students get 5, and D students get 3." She accepts the change of 6 silver coins from the cashier. "We pay for everything with Arcane coins - food, drinks, extra stationery, clothes, materials, services. Regular bills aren't accepted anywhere in here. The only time we convert our Arcane coins to outside currency is when we're going on some kind of field trip or during school break. I know it sounds like a lot, but most meals are just one or two silver coins each, so it's really not that bad if you keep a grade of at least a C, or B if you want to live comfortably."

"I don't have any Arcane coins, how am I going to pay you back?"

"You'll find some in your room. They leave this huge welcome package for you in there on your first day. It's like Christmas," Constance grins. "You can pay me back tomorrow, don't worry about it. They usually give you a Grade A student's allowance until you get your first real grade. I think they do it to make you realise how shitty it is when your grade drops and they cut your allowance. Motivation to work for the top grade, y'know?"

Debbie laughs. "That's kind of cruel."

"Tell me about it." Constance reaches out both hands to receive the tray of food from the stall owner, Debbie following in kind, and they thank the woman simultaneously. Constance tells Debbie to follow her to the quieter area, where Rose and her usually sit.

"Do you and Rose talk to Lou?" Debbie asks suddenly.

"No," Constance snorts. "Hardly ever. Rose is deathly afraid of her and besides, she really only hangs out with Tammy. Tammy's nice, we talk sometimes during types but she tends to stick to Lou too."

"Are they...?"

Constance frowns in suspicion at Debbie, but answers evenly. "Don't think so. I think they're just best friends."

Debbie probably shouldn't be feeling, much less enjoying, the relief that washes over her like pouring rain after a seven year drought - rejuvenating and very much needed. Just as they're about to reach one of the empty tables, they bump into a few of their classmates. Constance introduces Debbie to Bianca, who has camouflage abilities and was in the same Somatics class they just got out of. She has her arms linked with her girlfriend, Juniper - a petite, feminine girl in a maroon floral dress and matching hairband. She's in the technical class, Constance explains. Juniper grows and mutates flowers with specialised effects.

"One whiff of her sleeping lilies will knock anyone out!"

Juniper giggles, light and dainty like soft periwinkle petals.

"Really?"

Bianca nods at Debbie, heart eyes and swelling with pride as she compliments Juniper on her personal private garden near the girls' dorms. Juniper blushes through the conversation, pressing her lips to the back of Bianca’s right hand to hide her shy grin. They’re adorable, Debbie thinks; the way her parents were. She remembers the distinct sparkle in her mother’s eyes when she spoke about Debbie’s father and all the love he was pouring into the Academy for the children. She remembers her father’s modesty, turning the praise around to lift her mother to the skies. He adored her every minute of everyday and never feared to show it. Debbie always wanted a love like theirs.

They talk for hours, long table filling up with more of their classmates who stop by the cafeteria for dinner. Turns out the area wasn't just a favourite of Rose and Constance. Speaking of which, Rose does show up for dinner after all, albeit a small one of fruit and yoghurt from the smoothie stall. Then there’s Gemini, their class president, who settles in the seat next to Constance with another girl and a boy across from her. They introduce themselves to Debbie as Kiara and Dom respectively before diving into conversation about their latent types class.

“Turns out when I'm in a wall, Dom can still see me," Kiara says, sipping on a double-strawed milkshake with Gemini.

"Of course," Gemini chuckles. "You're organic matter, Kiara. No matter your molecular density."

"Still," Kiara huffs, looking back at everyone else. "It was cool. Ms Solara wanted us to learn our limitations today. She says knowing your limitations is the first step to breaking them. We did lots of fun tests and got to partner up. What'd you guys do?"

"Simulations," Rose grins. It's the most fun, Debbie remembers Constance telling her earlier.

"Man, I swear you specials get the best classes. Ms Daphne made us practise precision," Bianca shrugs.

"Mr Jairo gave us free time to work on our own projects for the festival," Juniper says, voice sweet and soft.

"Ah right, that's in a couple weeks, isn't it? I can't wait to see your booth, Jun. Yours always looks the prettiest with all the flowers and things," Rose smiles with a mouthful of strawberry.

Juniper blushes a little. "Thanks Rose. I just finished the final design and the product list. I'm giving a discount to anyone from Class B too so feel free to come by and take a look."

"Of course we'll be there. We always swing by yours and Nineball's stall every festival. Gotta support the class entrepreneurs, am I right?"

Juniper laughs, leaning the side of her head against the side of Bianca's.

"Thanks guys."

They wave off her gratitude with a smile and start to chatter about the festival, explaining to Debbie that it's an annual school festival where students from all class types get to showcase their abilities. The technical class usually starts preparations first because each student opens a booth to sell their own wares. At some point during the conversation where the somatic type kids are bouncing off ideas about what their class should do for the festival, Debbie scans her eyes over the room. She’s really looking for Lou, can’t seem to help herself from wondering, but finds someone else who piques her interest. It’s the girl who stood up against the bullies for her this morning. The girl has her hair in the same dreadlocks from before that she’s somehow managed to keep tidy in her beanie though it’s not quite cold enough for wearing one to be considered weather friendly. From where she’s seated, Debbie can see that she’s fiddling with something metallic between her fingers, in full concentration as she pushes the silver piece onto a larger object on the table in front of her. She’s possibly the only person from their class who’s in the cafeteria and not at their table.

“Hey Constance?” Debbie nudges her gently with her elbow. “Who’s that?”

“Oh, that’s Nineball. She’s in the technical class with Jun. Mechanical intuition; she invents things. She’s been here for ages. They say she’s one of the earliest acceptances in the entire school. A ton of the stuff around the school was built by her, like our house matron, Karla, in the girls’ dorm.”

“She _built_ the house matron?”

“It’s a robot. She’s really cool, super life-like. You’ll see later.”

“Huh.”

“Yeah, Nineball basically works for the school. They pay her for her inventions and give her really tight benefits. She’s got connections with the highest people in here so everyone knows not to mess with her. That’s why Muruki and Conan kept off you this morning.”

“I should thank her for that.”

Debbie gets up before Constance can get another word in. Everyone at the table looks up at her suddenly, eyes glued as she makes her way over to the girl with the busy fingers.

“Hi, Nineball?”

“What up?” the girl turns towards her, bored expression morphing into a curious one when she realises who’s speaking to her.

“I’m Debbie, I just started at Class B.”

“Uh huh.”

“I wanted to say thanks, for speaking up for me this morning.”

Nineball works the pin in her hands and clicks it into place on the contraption in front of her. “Don’t mention it.”

“The rest of us are sitting over there,” Debbie says, gesturing to their table behind her. “Do you want to join us?”

Nineball scoffs lightly, nothing harsh, but smirks at Debbie with somewhat of an amused quirk to her lips.

“Nah, I’m good.”

Debbie pauses, frowns. “Can I join _you_ then?”

“Do whatever you want man,” the girl mutters, not taking her eyes off the thing in front of her.

Debbie bites back a retort and sits across from Nineball. They talk - it’s mostly Debbie who does the asking and Nineball giving clipped, vague answers, but the girl gets slightly chattier as the time passes. Debbie finds out Nineball’s actually a year older than her, 12 instead of Debbie’s 11, her last year in the elementary branch. She also somehow finds out she’s a year older than Constance and Rose, who are both 10.

“Lou’s 11 too,” Nineball says suddenly.

“Oh?”

“So’s Tammy, but I don’t think she’s the one you were staring at this morning.”

Debbie rubs her right thumb over her left palm under the table.

“I wasn’t staring.”

“Course not.”

“You’re really patronising,” Debbie huffs, blowing at the strands of hair blocking her vision. She gives up, uses a hand to tuck the strays behind her ear. "What are you making anyway?"

"Top secret."

"Of course it is. What's your name?"

"Nineball."

"Your real name."

"Eightball."

Debbie exhales roughly in frustration, shutting her eyes to regain composure. Guess she isn't getting chattier after all. 

"You're infuriating," Debbie seethes.

Nineball smirks, inserting another piece onto the strange thing on the table between them. Debbie watches as her deft fingers move efficiently, feeling around scrap metal and slotting them exactly where she needs them. It looks ugly and entirely foreign to Debbie, but the swift accuracy with which Nineball constructs the mystery contraption intrigues her. She's too caught up in the satisfaction of the different little pieces being fit into the perfect puzzle formation to notice her friends coming over. Constance slings an arm around her shoulder as she plonks unceremoniously down to Debbie's left. Debbie turns to see Gemini, Kiara, Bianca - everyone - coming to settle at the table too. Nineball quirks a brow at Debbie in a semi-glare as if accusing her of conjuring this very situation she didn't want to be a part of.

"Hey Nine," Gemini, ever the cool-as-cucumber class president takes the lead in polite greeting. Debbie wouldn't be surprised if it was her idea for them to come over in the first place.

"Hi Gem."

It's the nickname that throws Debbie off. She's barely able to get the older girl to talk, but Gemini has her on a nickname basis?

"Is that the new biometric scanner for Karla?"

Nineball hums. "Reads vein patterns now too. Helps with detecting the shapeshifters."

"Udit won't be too happy about that."

"That perv needs to stay out of the girls' dorm," Bianca mutters.

There's a series of agreements, Dom awkwardly shifting in his seat as they delve into just how completely inappropriate boys can be. Debbie laughs along easily to every joke, even able to contribute because her new friends constantly remember to explain any inside slang and include her in every bit of the conversation. It's near 9pm when they decide to finally disperse - really, only Dom leaves while the girls head back to the dormitory together. They stalk across the campus, giggling and gossiping under the dim streetlamps lighting up the pathways. The school is quiet now, most students having retreated back to their quarters for the night. When they finally reach the dorm building, Debbie can barely make out anything about it's external features, except that it's extremely tall and could probably fit the population of Poland. She then finds out from the girls that there's apparently two more just like it behind the building they're currently standing in front of.

"All elementary girls are in this building though. Some of the girls in high school are here too but most are in the other two."

As they walk into the building, a lady robot on roller wheels skids up to them from the other end of the large, brightly-lit, marble-tiled lobby. She scans the lot of them with a silent red beam from head to toe then smiles - actually smiles.

"Good evening Nineball, Gemini, Kiara, Bianca, Juniper, Constance, Rose."

The girls respond in individual scattered greetings.

The robot turns towards Debbie, staring unblinking into Debbie's eyes. "And who might you be?"

"My name is Debbie Ocean. I just transferred here this morning."

There's a mechanic _voice-recognition sample obtained_ from the robot.

"Yes, yes. I see your record right now," Karla says more humanly this time. She scans Debbie's entire person again, then there's a click and a camera flash from her eyes. "And would Debbie be your preferred name to be called?"

"Um, sure."

"Wonderful. You've been assigned room 7C. Here's your key, Debbie." A compartment in Karla's chest opens to reveal a white keycard with Debbie's face and name on it. Debbie takes it, says her thanks to the machine and bids her goodnight with the other girls. Nineball stays in the lobby, saying she wants to replace the biometric scanner in Karla with the upgrade she was working on in the cafeteria. Debbie follows the girls to the other side of the lobby and into the corridor that has a lift on either side and a painting hanging on the far wall.

"You're on the 7th floor Deb. None of us are on there. Hardly any of us are on the same floors. It's like they split up people from the same class to force us to make friends from other classes," Constance laughs. "We have dorm games sometimes too, usually on the days we end classes earlier. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. We play according to our floors so it's good to know your floormates - you'll be fine, most people are pretty nice around here," she assures.

Gemini gets off on the 4th floor, says bye to everyone with a tired yawn. Constance gets off on the 5th and Kiara on the 6th.

"They should've left your welcome package in your room. Everything you need will be there," Rose gives Debbie's shoulder a gentle pat when the lift dings and slows to a stop on the 7th floor. "See you tomorrow."

"Thanks. Goodnight guys, see you tomorrow."

Debbie waits until the elevator doors shut completely before turning her back on it and walking down the gold-wallpapered, maroon-carpeted corridor to room 7C. The doors are a nice, clean white with a card scanner that Debbie lifts her key card to. There's a soft whirring as the gears click to unlock and Debbie turns the door handle, pushes her way in. She flicks the switch by the door and the room lights up, giving Debbie full view of the white walls and beautiful pale brown vinyl plank flooring covering every inch of the room. At first glance, the room is an L-shape - a straight rectangular area from the front door that ends with wide windows on the opposite wall, then a curve to the left that leads into a bigger area, probably the bedroom, Debbie presumes. A makeshift kitchen lies to her left when she walks in the front door - a small elongated counter ending where it meets the partition wall, equipped with a microwave-oven and a mini fridge for food storage. A small circle table for eating lies a little in front, by the wall, just as the flooring curves into the left turn. The metallic black luggage she brought with her from Florida has been left by the white wooden chairs surrounding the table. Straight ahead from the front door, by the windows, is a gray fabric sofa, decorated with a white throw blanket and plush white pillows. In front of it sits a glass-topped low coffee table, the kind you can only really use when seated on the floor or lying on the couch. Past the coffee table, leading into the bigger space on the left, Debbie follows the surprisingly warm and comfortable feel of the vinyl beneath her feet into the hidden portion of the room that spans twice the size of her bedroom back home. The queen-sized bed lies dead ahead, stands on a light gray canvas-covered bed frame, atop a fuzzy deep bluish-gray carpet, with white sheets, pillows and a dark brown duvet. From Debbie's viewpoint, to the left of the bed there's a nightstand, followed by the built-in wardrobe, then the bathroom. To the right of the bed, there's a big window over the top half of the wall with a similar view to the window in the living area and matching white adjustable blinds. Beside the window, closer to where Debbie now stands, there's a desk pushed flush against the wall on her right - a distance away from the corner, which Debbie appreciates - with a table lamp and some basic stationery items filled in a cylindrical glass container.

She's already floored, but gets a real kick when she peers into the closet and sees the multitude of clothing items - collared and uncollared t-shirts, blouses, blazers, shorts, skirts, pinafores, dresses, a jacket, a cap, ties, ribbons, scarves, a vest, socks of varying lengths, shoes, belts, even pajamas - all in splashes of maroon, white, navy blue and the other school colours. She grabs a set of pajamas from the shelf and underwear from her luggage before she makes her way into the bathroom. It takes a few seconds for her feet to adjust to the colder, polished white marble-tiled floor. She's relieved to find that there's a full-sized shampoo, conditioner and body wash already in the shower, and fresh towels lying on the rack right outside.

This feels like a hotel, Debbie thinks as she showers - and not even the shitty kind of hotel either - the kind that people would actually feel sad about leaving. She wonders how much her grandfather must be paying, then remembers she was offered an exclusive scholarship along with her invitation to enrol, fully sponsored by her uncle. Still, the thought reminds her to write a letter to her grandfather and it's what Debbie sets to do once she exits the shower with her long, damp hair wrapped in a towel to dry. She notices her class schedule, a pocket-sized map of the school, and 10 gold Arcane coins laid on her desk as she fishes out blank paper from the drawer and pulls out a black pen from the stationery collection on the tabletop. The moment she starts to write, she can't find it in her to stop, realises that she has more worth talking about just today than the past year combined. She doesn't go chronologically, actually starts from the back because she opens with 'I just got back from dinner with my friends'. When she finally recounts the time right after they parted, mentions Lou and the almost-escape and their first conversation in the administrative building, Debbie pictures Lou's eyes - blue and icy but illogically warm somehow, piercing right through her. She sees the familiar quirk to her lips, the one Debbie often sports herself, and closes her eyes to complete the image. She sees Lou in her uniform, hair a mess but not giving a damn, the only way Debbie has seen her so far. She scribbles down an ending to her letter, tells her grandfather how much she misses him despite actually enjoying the school and the company here. It's just not the same without him. Debbie caps the pen and folds the letter in half, words-side in, then uses another blank paper and glue to create a makeshift envelope before slipping the letter in. She leaves it on the table, making a mental reminder to post that letter tomorrow, hangs her towel up to dry, sets the alarm on the nightstand and hops right into bed for a good night’s sleep.

Debbie wakes to the beeping of the alarm and the in-pour of dim sunlight dispersed through gloomy New York clouds. The morning chill creeps up her exposed arms to raise goosebumps when she slinks out from under the duvet. If only she had more meat on her bones. She decides on a hot shower for her body just to warm up a little before getting ready for class. It's a surprise to Debbie how easily she finds her groove in her new room. She barely halts or stumbles around in search for anything, every single item seemingly arranged in a way almost instinctive to her.

She does a quick scan of the options in her closet and picks a comfy yet presentable outfit for her first real day - a white long-sleeved button-up blouse visible only at the collar and sleeves which Debbie folds up neatly, the rest hidden under a maroon fitted sweater and tucked into her navy pleated skirt. She knots one of the dark green and gold ribbons over the hair tie of her semi-messy ponytail, the two strands of silky fabric falling alongside her wavy chestnut hair. Debbie studies her reflection in the bathroom mirror, pulling out two shorter pieces of hair to frame her face before she smiles in satisfaction. She finishes the look with her brother's old watch, black socks that reach midway up her calves, and matching black oxfords. She nearly forgets her grandfather's letter, but snatches it off the desk along with 5 gold coins right before she leaves for breakfast.

With her schedule and a map of the school in hand, Debbie retraces her steps the previous day to make her way back to the cafeteria. She skims over the schedule. Art, linguistics, math, lunch, homeroom then PE. That's not too bad, Debbie thinks. It's mostly because there isn't types class and Debbie won't have to think about her powers - or lack there of - which brings her more relief than she could ever imagine. The array of astounding abilities she sees every time she walks into a building would floor her if they didn't make her feel so inadequate; and if there's one thing Debbie hates feeling, it's inadequacy. She's just thankful that students tend not to use their abilities outside enclosed spaces, or there'd really be no escape from the reality of how mundane she is compared to literally everyone else in this school. Though she supposes being mundane has its perks. God knows losing her entire family overnight made her the talk of the town back in Florida. She wanted so desperately to be mundane then - have a normal life, a normal childhood, with a normal family and normal friends, just like all the other kids in her grade. It took months of TLC by her dear grandfather before Debbie even started to speak in complete sentences again. At the thought of him, she remembers the letter in her hands and decides on a detour, searching for the mail room to post her letter. Debbie checks the map, once, twice, rechecks it. There's no mail room.

"Good morning Debbie, how are you today?"

Debbie turns to face the cheerful voice.

"Good morning Ms Daphne. I'm good, how are you?"

"Spectacular," she wiggles a little dance in her figure-hugging powder blue sweater dress, both hands on her hips. "Impeccable first day outfit." Daphne grins, eyeing Debbie's attire with an approving nod. "Class doesn't start for another hour. Are you off to breakfast?"

"Yes, but I'm looking for the post office first actually. I wanted to send my grandfather a letter I wrote last night."

Daphne looks slightly taken aback and concerned, giving a slight pout. "We have a counselor you can speak to if you're feeling homesick, Debbie."

"Oh, no, no. I'm okay. I just wanted to give him an update - he worries about me, probably way too much."

"Ah, I see. Well, we don't have a post office because communications in and out of the school are closely regulated and discouraged, but we do have our own delivery man on the outside that personally delivers parcels and things to keep them out of the hands of non-powered people. I can approve and post the letter for you if you'd like. I don't believe you'd include information in your letters that might sabotage the school and the safety of everyone here, would you?"

Debbie shakes her head, though she doesn't really understand how students could even have the power to hurt the school in the first place. They might disclose their abilities, Debbie supposes, that could probably attract some unwanted attention if sent to the wrong person. "No I wouldn't. Thanks Ms Daphne." Debbie hands over the letter.

Daphne beams. "Of course, dear. If you write any more letters, you can pass them on to me and I'll send them out for you. I must let you know though, this can't happen too often or we'll both get in trouble. And I'll only entertain letters to your grandfather okay? No one else."

Something about her eyes, the way they crinkle at the corners as her smile turns into a frown, the edge in her voice, hints to Debbie that Daphne is only making an exception because she somehow knows about what happened to Debbie's parents. Her uncle could've been the culprit, she thinks, but doesn't really care. Whatever gets her letters to her grandfather.

"Understood."

"Good, go on for breakfast then. I'll see you in class later."

"Thanks again Ms Daphne. See you later."

They part at the patch of grass right by the entrance of one of the main school parks. The central building is close by, Debbie not having veered too far off the path, so she pockets the school map and starts to walk, hugging her arms to shield herself from the chilly morning. Just another thing she'll have to learn to get used to.

Maybe not, she thinks, when she feels the air around her start to warm. It starts from her back, then curls around her and spreads to the front as little balls of fire flicker around Debbie in a ring. She already knows who's behind it, so she doesn't feel the least bit afraid, just tries her best to hide her eagerness to see Lou again. The flames fuse into one, then shrinks, bobbing along ahead of Debbie to lead her into the park, behind big trees and tall bushes. She waits, peering around in search when the flame brings her to a hidden area just out of view from most of the school.

"Hello?" Debbie wonders aloud.

"Up here," a voice from above her drawls lazily.

Debbie looks up into the branches, squinting to narrow her focus until she finds a splotch of white amidst the deep green leaves. Lou's sitting on one of the branches, way too high for Debbie to even think about attempting to reach, leaning against the tree bark with her eyes closed. She walks over until she's nearly directly under the branch.

"What are you doing up there?"

"Resting."

"Don't you have a bed for that?"

Lou chuckles. "Maybe I like listening to people talk about letters while I sleep."

Debbie scoffs. "Of course you were eavesdropping. Don't tell me, you have super-hearing too?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. Multi-talented," Lou says, and Debbie can hear the smugness in her voice. "I think it's sweet, that you want to keep in contact with your grandfather."

"I'm sensing a 'but'," Debbie mutters, staring down at the fallen leaves she's kicking with her feet.

" _But,_ ", Lou drawls loudly, low and suggestive, then jumps off to land both feet on the ground gracefully right in front of Debbie, too bloody close and sudden because Debbie jumps back in surprise. Lou's reflexes are faster than her fall, both arms reaching forward to snake around Debbie's waist protectively, steadying her as she instinctively curls her fingers around anything within her grasp - which just so happens to be the lapels of Lou's blazer - to steady herself. Debbie blinks her shock away, sucking in a shaky breath to compose herself and feeling her chest rise to press lightly against Lou's. She glares, irritated, but is met with nothing but a delighted grin and a childish kind of playfulness in Lou's pale blue eyes.

"I think you should focus on what's in front of you," Lou continues in a whisper, leaning in tentatively towards Debbie's lips and pulling her closer by the waist. Debbie's not stupid, knows Lou is playing a game, so she grips tighter on her lapels, lips quirking in a challenge she's almost positive Lou won't follow through with. She's absolutely right, which shouldn't make Debbie feel as disappointed as she does, but when Lou retreats with a knowing smirk, she only puts distance between their lips, not their bodies. The blonde leans back against the tree behind her, pulling Debbie flush and holding her close, foreheads just barely touching, but arms still firmly locked around Debbie. Lou still wants her, Debbie realises, just not like that. Not yet. It's an informative piece of knowledge that Debbie definitely intends to take full advantage of. After all, why should Lou be the only one having fun teasing the heck out of her? It's only fair that she gets Lou back for jumping from ridiculous heights and scaring her to death not once but _twice_ since they've met - and if this game ends up leading to something else that involves more of Lou's warm hands on her hips then well, Debbie can't say she really minds. She loosens her grip on Lou's lapels, unfurling her fingers to place one hand flat against Lou's sternum while the other cups just under her jaw.

"Kiss me or let me go," Debbie dares, purposefully drowning her words in mock boredom.

Lou chuckles, but Debbie can hear the slight uncertainty bubbling out with the laughter. She chooses to relinquish her hold on Debbie, and Debbie pushes herself off in a victorious smirk. "Better get on to breakfast then. Can't have the princess going hungry."

Debbie rolls her eyes at the pet name. "Come with," she says - less of an offer, more of a nudge.

"Princess need an escort?"

"At least eat a little something before class."

"Class?" Lou scoffs. "Hard pass. I'm getting back to my beauty sleep."

"Oh, come on," Debbie groans, taking Lou by the hand and tugging her along anyway. Lou pretends to protest, huffs and puffs in a sulk like she's ready to set Debbie's hair on fire, but doesn't actually put up a fight. She does, however, shake off Debbie's hand once they reach the pavement.

"This is live abduction," Lou mutters with her arms crossed.

"Stop being dramatic." Debbie checks her watch, tilts her head just off center and does a mental calculation. "We have thirty minutes before first period. I'm getting some food first," Debbie says as she walks towards the central building. "Do you mind?"

Lou shakes her head, raising the back of her right hand to muffle her yawn and using her left to wave carelessly. "Knock yourself out."

Debbie heads straight for the smoothie stall - no time to waste - and orders a green smoothie with an extra boost of chia seeds. When she turns her head to look at the gold coin she's fished out from her skirt pocket, she sees Lou standing by the side, studying her with a grin. Lou wiggles her brows, laughs, and Debbie can't help the smile that accompanies the roll of her eyes.

"You like strawberry?" Debbie asks.

"Blue."

Debbie nods, turns to the stall owner and orders another blueberry smoothie. She pays for both with her gold coin and gets eight silver coins in return. The drinks are done when Debbie's still got her hand full with change, and Lou comes forward immediately to accept the drinks from the stall lady with a charming smile. She hands Debbie hers once she's kept her money and fumbles in her pocket for a silver coin to pay Debbie back.

"My treat," Debbie says simply, sipping on her drink as they make their way towards the education building.

"Huh. You know, most people splurge on fine dining and diamonds to impress their girl, but I always thought that was overrated anyway. I'm _much_ more of a liquid-fruit puree kinda gal. You really nailed me there, Deb."

"That's what she said."

Lou raises her brows so high they almost reach midway across her forehead, turning to face Debbie with surprised amusement. They hold eye contact for a while, just long enough for Lou to see the mirth in Debbie's brown eyes, then burst into laughter in sync - Debbie's more of a chuckle compared to Lou's unrestrained belly laugh. Lou uses a finger to dab at the corner of her eyes as her laugh dwindles into a genuine grin.

"Who would've thought."

Debbie smiles, eyes bright and shimmery with an indescribable pride swelling inside her. It's been ages since she's joked around like this - playful banter she used to toss around with Danny - half sarcasm, half sharp wit, speckled with some of the dirty jokes she would overhear whenever her teenage brother brought his friends over. It's just like her grandfather said. This school really _is_ changing her - or rather, drawing out old, nearly forgotten behaviours and feelings that Debbie's kept suppressed for months. She tells herself that she should be afraid to let them out, but can't find a sliver of fear when her view consists of a happy Lou sipping on berries, laughing and glancing over periodically with a hidden adoration that has Debbie's tummy doing flips. If anything, she feels fearless, bolder, ready to match Lou's love of mischief and teasing with her own. Lou brings out the fun in her, and Debbie can't help but latch on, missing the freedom and feel of not having to force herself away from jokes and being 'too happy' because she doesn't believe she should get to feel that way when she's lost so much. With Lou, it feels like she's gaining again, after losing for such a long time, and it's all Debbie needs to realise that this fiery blonde girl with a heart after hers might just be what she needs to get through that last, most crucial bit of healing she's been holding back on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy new year!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just popping by to say that after reading some of your comments, I've decided to age the characters up over time. hope you enjoy this chapter!

They dump their empty drinks in the bin along the corridor to their classroom and arrive right on time, but Daphne's already there, standing in front of a full class when they walk in. All eyes fall on them and a soft murmur buzzes from their classmates, but neither Debbie nor Lou pay any attention, coolly giving Daphne a greeting as they pass, heading straight for their respective seats. Now that everyone's in their own spot, Debbie can finally tell which exact seat is Lou's. All the way back, in the column next to Debbie's. There's only five rows in each column so Lou really isn't too far away.

"All right... Now that everyone's here, we can get started with class. I've got the materials for today's lesson up here on my desk," Daphne says, gesturing to the neat piles of art supplies on the teacher's table in front. "I want you all to come up and take one of each item before we start."

In her old school, her classmates would always rush forward at the teacher's call, racing to snag their own set of supplies, often pushing others in the process, eager for any form of hands-on learning, especially if it was something creative like art. Here, everyone seems to ooze a composed sense of maturity, even forming a queue to self-facilitate a safe and orderly manner for everyone to get their turn. Of course, there are the anomalies, like Conan, who simply waves his hand and levitates three sets of each item, placing them on his own table, Muruki's, and the desk of the boy sitting between them. That must be Claude Becker, Debbie realises, remembering what Constance told her the day before. She catches him staring at her with a devious smirk, full of disgusting, misplaced arrogance that makes Debbie turn away. She feels the curl of Constance's fingers against her elbow, tugging at her to join the queue, and gladly follows along. Daphne teaches them the importance of perspective in two-dimensional art, instructing them to play around with different focal points and distances using paints and lead pencils, offering sample pictures and art pieces to illustrate how the smallest shift in perspective can change the entire viewpoint of the artist. Daphne rounds out the lesson by asking everyone to do a perspective sketch of the class from their own viewpoint, facing forward. Rose unravels a strip of cloth from her arm and uses it to grip her pencil, mentally flicking the cloth with delicate precision to produce the most beautiful sketch. Constance and Debbie, well...

Debbie looks over, meets Constance's eye, both trying to hold back their laughter.

"Man, we suck," Constance sighs, attempting to shade some shadows into her work.

"They're not _amazing_ , but they're not too bad. I think I did the back of Gemini's head pretty good."

Gemini spins around from in front of her, takes one long look at Debbie's work then stares at her incredulously, sighing with a shake of her head and turning back around. Constance howls with laughter.

"Sure, Deb. Say it a hundred more times and maybe it'll come true."

Debbie laughs, nudging at the younger girl beside her with her elbow.

Daphne dismisses them without collecting their work - thank the heavens - and they return the rest of the supplies back to the table, stacking them neatly just the way they found them. She draws something flimsy and black from her leather bag and clicks it - a big balloon-looking sack inflates from her hand immediately and floats to the ceiling, attached to a string held between her fingers. She yanks the bag down and tosses the art supplies in before releasing the bag and letting it hit the ceiling again. Her classmates don't react, already starting to chatter quietly among themselves before Daphne even leaves.

"The bag flips gravity," Constance explains when she sees Debbie's intrigue. "Makes it easy to carry heavy stuff."

"Nineball make that?"

"You know it."

Rose goes to the back and grabs them three linguistics textbooks, handing one over to Constance and the other to Debbie.

"Hey Rose? Couldn't you just use the cloth to grab things for you? Save yourself the trouble of moving."

Rose shakes her head. "It could get in the way of someone else's abilities," she murmurs.

"She means Lou's," Constance says despite Rose's protest of 'she might hear you!'. "Cloth and fire don't go well together."

A tall, poised middle-aged woman with long wavy snow white hair and creamy white skin like Lou's enters the class just then, effectively putting their conversation on hold for the next hour. The woman appears almost otherworldly, slim figure under her flowy navy blue maxi dress with eyes nearly as big as Daphne's - except hazier, more clouded. She introduces herself to Debbie as Astrid - Ms Astrid - and Debbie reciprocates the courtesy with a smile that the lady doesn't return, responding with a mere nod instead. Her voice is clear and loud, but soft, even softer than Juniper's. Still, she seems to keep everyone's attention better than any of the other teachers Debbie has met so far, the class falling pin-drop silent the moment she walked in. It could be the inherent calm she exudes, or the slightly dreamy, ethereal way she glides that captivates everyone - Debbie's not sure, tilts her head in a bid to figure it out, but then Astrid looks up from her open textbook, and everything figures itself out. Her eyes, which were originally an entirely average colour that Debbie didn't even register, are now a luminous almost-neon purple. Astrid continues speaking, steady and unaffected, but everyone keeps staring, only looking away when she instructs them to read a few pages of text. Her eye colour changes four times in the entire hour - Debbie took note - purple, red, gold, a brown so dark it's almost black. She gives them their homework for the day when her eyes turn a stunning royal blue, just as she's about to leave the room.

"Her eyes," Debbie whispers to Constance once she's gone.

"Yeah, she can't control it. She apologised for it on her first day because she thought it'd distract us. I mean, she's not wrong, but it's not like she can help it, y'know?"

Debbie hums, getting up to collect the textbooks off Constance and Rose's desk. She offers to take Gemini's too, and the class president is a happy kind of surprised at Debbie's thoughtfulness, clearly not used to depending on someone for a change. She walks down the empty aisle space between the columns of chairs, books stacked in her hands, and has to pass between Lou and Tammy to get to the shelves at the back. Lou grins at her, legs kicked up on the desk like she's riding shotgun in a car through the countryside. Debbie gives a quick eye roll upwards, not quite making a full round, but Lou catches the slight quirk at the corner of her lips and smirks to herself. Debbie brings back four math textbooks, distributing them to her friends as they wait for their next teacher to come in. She is _so_ ready for lunch - Debbie can practically hear her stomach complaining about already being done with her liquid breakfast and needing more, stat. Another teacher new to Debbie walks in. Female, again, but every single one of them have been so vastly different from one another in every other aspect. Their math teacher's name is Willa, and Debbie vaguely remembers Constance mentioning her yesterday as one of the technical type teachers. She looks like a librarian, acts like one too - hands out blank paper and makes them do a whole chapter's worth of problem sums in silence. She informs them that they can only leave when they've handed the work in, and there's another worksheet on her table for them to complete as homework. Debbie sighs. There's always that one teacher. A half hour in, the class starts getting restless, quiet murmurs and frustrated sighs drifting across the room. Ms Willa frowns from her seat behind the desk, but doesn't say anything.

A sudden prickling in her neck causes Debbie to jolt in her seat. Her hand flies to the spot at the back of her neck, head turning in a frown until she catches Lou's gleaming eye. She turns back, tapping the rounded end of her pencil against her textbook, pretending to process the next question.

"Did you just burn me?" Debbie hisses under her breath, knowing Lou's super ears can definitely hear her.

Another sensation dances across the same spot, less of a sting and more of a light nibbling spreading down her spine. Debbie shudders, feeling the same gentle prickling at her fingertips.

"Lou," Debbie whispers in warning, firm and insistent, closing her hands into fists to ward off the feeling. It stops abruptly, and Debbie can't stop herself from discreetly glancing back again, checking to see that Lou didn't get the wrong idea or feel offended. Lou gives her a smug grin, gathers the loose papers on her desk and walks to the front with Tammy. There's two soft clicks when both of them staple their work individually using Ms Willa's stapler, then they're handing it over and out the door with twenty minutes to spare. Debbie's got one question left, then she's home free and on her way to lunch. She wiggles her fingers and rubs them gently against one another, wondering at the lost sensation from Lou's little trick. It takes her a little more than a minute to finish the last problem, but when she's finally done she peers over at Constance and Rose who whisper for her to go on to lunch first - they'll meet her there when they're done. She's surprised but also not, to not find Lou or Tammy in the cafeteria. Her friends join her a little past noon and time flies, as it always does when she finds herself in good company.

"C'mon, we have to go back to our rooms to change," Constance says when they've placed their empty plates and bowls in the tray return area.

"Change?"

"Yeah, we sure ain't doing PE in skirts and dresses. And we don't have time after homeroom, so we usually just change during lunch."

When Debbie gets back to her room, she sifts through the clothes in her closet for a pair of navy blue workout shorts, a white t-shirt with the school crest, and slips into a pair of white trainers - the standard gym attire, according to Constance. She removes the green ribbon along with her hair tie and re-ties her ponytail on the elevator ride down, without the ribbon this time.

The minute they step outside the heated building, Debbie groans, brushing her palms on her bare thighs. "Why on earth would they make us wear shorts? It's not like we're in Hawaii."

She expects a resounding agreement from the girls but instead receives blank, confused stares.

"You know this entire school is heated right?"

"The barrier around the school? Everything within it works on a thermostat thingamajig. If you think _this_ is cold, you'll freeze past those gates."

Constance and Bianca laugh out loud, but Gemini just chuckles at their antics, shrugging off her school jacket and offering it to Debbie.

"We're all used to it by now. Just give it a bit of time. This is actually pretty perfect weather."

Debbie shoves Constance and Bianca in the arm with mock annoyance, gratefully accepting the jacket from Gemini. "And this is why you're the nice one, Gem."

Daphne comes in again during homeroom to supervise them doing some of their homework. Between her sugar-sweet doe eyes, apparent self-confidence, and helping her smuggle letters, Debbie can't decide whether she likes Daphne or not. She hates that the woman habitually oversteps boundaries like she did with Tammy, brazen with a lack of self-reservation that sometimes borders on thoughtless and intrusive, but she likes that she's kind, elegant, eager to include everyone, and seems to have a soft spot for Debbie. Case in point, Daphne catches her looking and flashes her the most energetic grin before she dramatically blows the class a kiss goodbye and dismisses them with a laugh.

Onto Kiara and Dom's favourite class of them all - Physical Education. They have a full two hours of it, double the hour of other subjects.

One hour just isn't enough, Bianca insists.

Debbie's just a tiny bit impatient for the lesson to start, folding up Gemini's jacket neatly and placing it on one of the benches along the edge of the track surrounding the school field. She's been hearing the girls poke fun at Dom since the previous day about his not-so-little crush on Ms Solara, one of their PE teachers, but Dom is so quiet and shy that Debbie can't quite picture it. It's only when Debbie finally sees her that she gets it. Completely. The woman is 5 feet 8 of pure, breathtaking sunshine. Luscious blonde hair pulled into a low ponytail, fiery amber eyes, golden flash tattoos speckled all over her tan body, and a white t-shirt with bright orange track pants. Next to her, Mr Rivera, their other PE teacher, looks like the dullest person on earth in his black t-shirt and gray track pants, but his height and dashing appearance more than makes up for it. The girls swoon, literally, and if he notices, he doesn't let on, greeting them with a charming smile. They're probably the two youngest teachers they've got, along with Daphne. With a similar air of confidence, Solara has a cool, laid-back disposition in contrast to her sunny appearance. Rivera is lean, tall, handsome like the captain of the high school basketball team in the movies. They welcome Debbie warmly and jump start class by making the class run a lap around the track before leading them through some simple warm-up stretches. When Rivera pulls out a soccer ball from the big gray drawstring sack he left by the benches, everyone whoops in excitement. The class gets divided into two and the game gets going in a small section of the giant field which doubles as a soccer pitch with two big goals at either end. They're not supposed to use their powers, and for the most part they don't, but Debbie doesn't miss the way the ball swerves just that bit to the left and misses Juniper's kick when Conan lifts his hand. She can't be mad because Kiara, who's on Debbie's team, also uses her density to her advantage, hardening herself so her kicks are just that bit stronger and the ball flies just that bit faster. The teachers smirk from the side as they watch, definitely fully aware but secretly admiring the way the students cleverly exploit their gifts seemingly under the radar.

It's during their hour-in water break that Claude Becker finally approaches Debbie before she can make it to Gemini's side. He's been eyeing her all day - like a lion waiting to pounce.

"Hey there," is what he decides to roll with. 

She internally groans, but responds with a cordial greeting and introduction, giving halfhearted responses to his shameless flirtation. A thrill of mischief displaces the boredom when she catches Lou stealing glances. It turns into a game. She flirts back subtly, smiling coyly and stepping just a tiny bit closer, but stays composed, never tripping to fall at Claude's feet. She'd honestly rather choke to death.

She can tell Lou's watching, can almost feel the temperature around her climb from Lou's jealousy. Part of Debbie, that narcissistic side that everyone inherently has but tries to keep hidden, enjoys it, likes proving - she's not sure to who - that she isn't completely powerless when it comes to Lou, despite knowing full well that she's still got the electric feeling of having Lou wedged between her and a tree seared into her prefrontal cortex. She likes being the one teasing for a change, wants to see how far she can push before Lou finally says something. And yet, with all the self-assurance Lou appears to exude, she’s certainly not quite arrogant enough to assume Debbie’s as smitten with her as she is with Debbie. It's her first time - she’s feeling too much and falling too fast, plunging straight for what she thought was mild shaky waters but now seems to be solid jagged concrete. 

Lou can hardly bear to look at Debbie ducking her head in a laugh, forehead dipping dangerously close to Claude Becker’s shoulder blade. It makes her insides twist and turn in a sickening kind of way. Debbie doesn't realise it yet, but the only reason she feels like she has more control now is because she's draining it out of Lou. And Lou is letting her.

When they gather around the teachers after the break, Debbie stands far enough that she can see when Tammy's hand reaches out to give Lou's shoulder a small squeeze. She frowns when Lou just turns to give Tammy a blank stare, but Tammy simply moves her hand to pat Lou's back gently before dropping it back to her side. For the remaining forty minutes of PE, the class begs the teachers to let them play with something called the "Arc ball", and after minutes of pleading and pouting, Solara finally says yes, convincing Rivera to retrieve the item from the same gray sack. The ball is white, with a big maroon letter A and gold detailing.

"Debbie, what are your abilities?" Ms Solara asks.

"I haven't figured it out yet."

She hears Conan and Muruki snicker from beside Claude, and sees the corner of his lips quirk upwards in a smirk as he shares a look with them. Asshole.

"Hm, it'd probably be better for you to sit this one out and observe first then. The Arc ball isn't like a regular soccer ball even though we play the game the same way. Gemini?" Mr Rivera passes the ball over, signalling for Gemini to demonstrate.

"The Arc ball changes according to our abilities. For example, I have the illusion ability, so when I throw it..." Gemini says, tossing it up high. The ball grows fifty times it's original size, expanding to hover over them when it reaches it's peak, then falls, like a planet falling out of the sky, making everyone cower and duck, before it shrinks back to normal at the last minute and plops back in Gemini's hand. "But it only works if I want it to," she explains, tossing the ball up again. This time, nothing happens. It rises and falls like an ordinary ball. "It won't work if you don't know how to activate your abilities. And it can be quite overwhelming at first, so it might be a little safer for you to watch the first couple of rounds from outside the playing area like Mr Rivera said." Gemini rests a hand on her arm with an apologetic smile.

Debbie chuckles, insisting to Gemini that it's fine, then heads over to stand right outside the border of the pitch, in the center so she can have the best view of the entire playing field. Her classmates split into two teams, appointing a representative to participate in the coin toss to decide who gets to kickoff. Once everyone moves to their side of the pitch, the game begins. They're only using a small section of the field so Debbie can see everything close-up, literally just mere meters away, but she still feels slightly bummed about not being able to join in the fun. It's a strange grouping of people - Constance and Conan on Lou and Tammy's team, and Rose and Gemini on Claude's.

Debbie expects a wild chaos of abilities every time someone touches the ball, but it's surprisingly inactivated for most of the game unless they're trying to score. Powers don't have to be restricted to the Arc ball, Debbie learns when Muruki, goalkeeper for Claude's team, flies off the ground to catch an incoming ball floating above everyone’s heads, out of reach - courtesy of Conan - earning cheers from everyone in her team.

“Ha! Better luck next time!” Muruki yells from five feet in the air, releasing the ball so it falls into Claude’s hands. He laughs, drops the ball and kicks it hard before it hits the ground, sends it flying across the pitch. What should be a smooth trajectory halts when the ball vanishes midway, and the other team groans, spinning around to find that the ball’s already flown straight into the goal. He high fives Muruki, and haughtily accepts all the praise from his other team members. Debbie doesn’t quite understand what just happened, and right when she’s about to ask Rose, who’s standing nearby, to explain, Claude jogs over to resume his defence position. He flashes Debbie a cocky grin, winks, and the exhilarating rush from scoring a goal must be contagious because Debbie chuckles unknowingly, maybe feels the tiniest bit impressed. Before she can congratulate him with a: ‘nice work’, the game’s resumed, and the field bursts into horrified gasps and panicked screams.

The Arc ball, now enveloped in angry wild flames, is hurtling through the air and straight at Claude. Until he spins around, disappears in a bid of self-preservation, and suddenly Debbie’s making a split-second decision to sprint right into the line of fire, hugging Rose close to her chest to shield her from the flames. She squeezes her eyes shut and grips Rose tightly, bracing for the searing pain on her back. It hits her in the shoulder, not the back, but beyond the expected contact pain, Debbie doesn’t feel much more. The teachers are by her side before the ball hits the ground and bounces away, emitting wisps of white smoke.

“What the hell, Miller?” she vaguely hears Claude yell from a distance.

“Debbie, are you okay?” Ms Solara asks in concern, worrying over Debbie by placing her hands on Debbie’s shoulders and turning her round and round slowly, repeatedly scanning her entire body for any signs of injury. Debbie nods hesitantly, still in a daze. Constance and her other friends bolt over, hugging both her and Rose in turns. Solara checks on Rose too, and Debbie uses the time to stare at the Arc ball in confusion. She turns back, ponytail flinging over the shoulder she catches Lou staring at. The shoulder that got hit. Lou looks scared, pale white like she’s sick. When her eyes lift to meet Debbie’s, Debbie sees guilt, and pain, and every bad emotion she never wants to see on Lou ever again.

Then Rivera is yelling at Lou, loud and fierce and in front of the entire class stunned in silence, because how, how on earth could Lou _do_ something like that - jeopardise Rose’s life, because doesn’t she know Rose is made out of _cloth_? How could she be so irresponsible, so careless?

Debbie wants to stop the yelling, stop the blaming, because Lou’s just taking all of it, isn’t even looking at her anymore, just looks utterly defeated; but at the same time, Debbie wants the answers too. The three of them were by the edge of the playing field, far from the goal, so that kick clearly wasn’t a goal shot. Why in the world would Lou think it was a good idea to set it on fire? Even if the ball scared them away, it wouldn’t have gone anywhere remotely beneficial for her team. She could’ve really, really hurt Rose. Debbie grits her teeth, turning back to check on her friend. Rose is shaky, but pulls Debbie into another tight hug and mutters thank-yous like she’s in a trance. Debbie rubs her back in soothing strokes, tells her it’s okay, that it’s all over and she’s completely fine, everything is fine.

Rivera, still outraged and frustrated from the incident, dismisses the class in a clipped, tense order. “Not you,” he warns Lou. “You’re coming with us.”

Debbie wants to ask where they’re taking Lou, wants to go along, but knows Lou has to receive her punishment for endangering the life of another student. Caught between wanting to protect Lou from the teachers and wanting to protect Rose from Lou, she’s not sure where she stands so she watches stiffly as the teachers toss the Arc ball in their gray bag and lead Lou away, towards the administrative building. The rest of the class disperses awkwardly, still frazzled from the sudden turn in events, and a little lost at how they should react. Tammy casts Debbie a look, then hugs her little bunny and leaves too.

“Holy shit, Debbie,” Constance says, elbowing her in the arm. “You can extinguish fire.”

“I didn’t do anything. Lou stopped it just in time.”

Gemini frowns, voice going soft. “We can’t retract our abilities once we decide to use it on the Arc ball, Debbie. Lou couldn’t have stopped it even if she wanted to. It was you. You stopped it.”

“Your fear of Rose getting hurt must’ve triggered it,” Juniper says, pulling a little sachet of crushed flowers from her pocket and offering it to Rose. It's sweet smelling, a little musky, and even from where she's standing, Debbie can feel a calm wash over her instantly. Rose sniffs it in short intervals, easing herself back into sanity. Debbie doesn't know what to say. After all this time stressing about whether she has abilities, she finally finds out that she does, and it saved her friend's life, but somehow it's not quite as thrilling as she thought it would be.

Kiara hums from the side, drawing everyone's attention to her frown.

"Hey Deb, do you think you could activate your ability again?"

"Um," Debbie mutters as she pulls her lower lip into a bite. "I don't know..."

"It's usually a lot easier after the first time. Just focus on what you were feeling when you did it just now."

Debbie purses her lips, knits her eyebrows in concentration as she tries to take herself back. She watches as Kiara reaches a hand out slowly, pressing it against Debbie's stomach lightly, then pushing further and further until Debbie stumbles back a little.

"What are you doing, Kiara?" Bianca voices Debbie's sentiments exactly.

Kiara only grins, reaching the same hand out towards Bianca and pushing it all the way through Bianca's abdomen, wiggling her fingers when they pop out from her back. Everyone groans in disgust, making mock retching sounds as Kiara pulls her arm back out, returning her molecular density to normal.

"Debbie isn't a human fire extinguisher, she's a human shield. She has the nullification ability - powers don't work on her."

Her friends turn to her with curious fascination. They've never heard of such an all-encompassing ability before, seemingly useful but at the same time not. Rose reaches tendrils of cloth towards Debbie's bare arm, surprised to see it successfully wrap around her skin, then retracts them.

"She's got some limitations."

"Don't we all?" Kiara grins anyway, pulling Debbie into a tight hug. “Congrats on unlocking your ability, Debbie.”

She gets a flurry of congratulations from the others, pats on the back and hugs that help relieve the anxiety still coursing through her veins.

“This calls for a celebration,” Kiara announces, tugging Debbie along by the hand. “Rose is alive and well, Debbie’s discovered her ability-”

“Lou’s in Arc juvie.”

Kiara stops walking, spins around and throws an are-you-kidding-me glare at Gemini. “She’s the _reason_ Rose almost got incinerated.”

“Only because Claude teleported away.”

“And that makes it better? Claude Becker might be a dirtbag but that doesn’t make what Lou did _okay_ , Gem. What is up with you? How could you defend her?”

And why on earth Gemini decides to look at her in that moment and sigh, Debbie couldn’t tell.

“She didn’t mean it,” Gemini argues, “she looked so _scared_ when she saw where the ball was going.”

“Well if she looked happy, that would’ve been downright sick,” Kiara seethes, even jerking her head forward as she spits the words out angrily.

“Kiara,” Dom nudges with a gentle hand on her shoulder, trying to prevent the fight from escalating. Kiara forcefully shrugs his hand off.

“You’re too forgiving, Gem,” she says, more contained this time but more disappointed too. “It’s not always a virtue you know, sometimes not taking a side just makes you a bad friend.”

Kiara turns, stalks away without another word, leaving everyone in a tense silence. Dom sighs, gives the girls an apologetic look, then runs off after her.

“Don’t take it to heart, Gem. Kiara’s just angry,” Constance offers.

“I don’t mean to not be angry, Rose.” Gemini looks over at her friend, searching for understanding. “I just...” she trails off, stares over Rose’s shoulder and hugs her arms to herself.

“You’re the class president, you can’t help but _be_ protective over all of us. I couldn't possibly get mad about that, silly.”

“We don’t blame you, Gem," Bianca assures, "but I can see where Kiara’s coming from. Lou really went too far this time.”

“I think we all just need a good rest to cool down. It was a scare for everyone,” Juniper chimes in, giving Gemini a little pat on the shoulder as encouragement to start walking. The whole group follows along, strolling slowly.

“What did you mean by Arc juvie?” Debbie asks abruptly when they're off the field.

Her friends share a nervous, uneasy kind of look that makes Debbie’s tummy turn with dread.

“We don’t actually know what it is," Rose starts uncertainly. 

"It's short for Arcane juvie," Gemini continues. "Everyone suspects it’s discipline for the highest level of rebellion in the school."

Constance takes over. "The rest of us have only gotten detention at the most, which happens after school, but when Lou skips class and they decide to punish her, she gets taken away on the spot. No one has ever seen her at detention, so it has to be a different kind of punishment. Nobody really dares to ask about it. The older kids say it happens to the other dangerous type students too.”

“Probably because letting them get out of control is more of a risk,” Bianca mutters.

“It’s nothing crazy though," Constance hurries to ease Debbie's mind. "Lou doesn’t come out bleeding or injured or anything. Mostly she just looks tired and annoyed and doesn't want to talk to anyone.”

They stop by the cafeteria to order takeaways. It doesn't feel right to eat together knowing how upset Kiara, a part of their friendship group, is. Debbie hardly even feels like eating, but her stomach churns acid inside her, threatening to burn through her organs if she doesn't. This is what starvation must feel like, she thinks, but can't seem to get a hold of any semblance of an appetite.

"It takes the most out of you the first time you use your abilities. You get better as you practice, don't worry. Just eat a big meal for dinner, you'll be fine after that," Gemini assures.

"I don't have the appetite."

"Well, that's got nothing to do with your powers," Gemini whispers with a sympathetic, understanding smile. "Eat. She'll be fine," the girl says, walking away to get her food.

Debbie doesn't get the chance to question or deny Gemini's insinuation. She's come to realise that for all their little 4'10" or so glory, her friends are pretty self-confident. She guesses that's what happens when you're thrust into independence from such a young age. They get their food, and while they wait for Bianca and Juniper to order an extra side from a different stall, Debbie pays Constance back the money she owes. It inadvertently takes her mind back to Lou and she glances at the smoothie stall, scans the entire cafeteria even though she knows she won't find her here.

It's still bright out when Debbie gets back to her room. She wants to shower, feels icky from running around playing ball, but her stomach can't wait. The burrito bowl probably isn't as amazing as Debbie's tastebuds make it out to be, but when you're hungry, everything's a Michelin-star meal. And right now, Debbie's ravenous. She devours the extra tacos Gemini convinced her to buy, grateful for the girl's foresight. When she's done with both meals, she only just reaches satiation, and Debbie's never felt more impressed with herself - downing that much food without an appetite has to be a first. She jumps in the shower after, changing into clean, comfortable pajamas and blow-drying her hair so that she can lie on her back in bed without worrying about dampening the sheets with her wet hair. Even sprawled with her limbs fully extended, Debbie fits nicely within the mattress, staring up at the white ceiling in a post-heavy-meal daze. It's quiet save for Debbie's own breathing, and the steady rhythm of her inhale-exhale lulls her into a light sleep when she holds her blink for just a second too long. The next time she wakes, she's stirring from a knock on her door. The darkness throws her off a little, a slight panic in her chest before she gathers her bearings and crawls out of bed, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She turns the lights on and hurries into the bathroom to gargle some mouthwash, knowing she'll have to speak to her visitor. The minty sting in her mouth helps to wake her up a little. Finding Lou standing in front of her door - that helps to wake her up a lot. The blonde shuffles in without invitation, shuts the door behind her and presses her back against it, staring at Debbie. 

Her relief to see Lou trumps every question she has in her mind at the moment and she stares back at the blonde with bated breath, matching her silence. Several minutes pass before Lou finally starts to approach with her hands stretched weakly in front of her. She takes Debbie by her pajama top, undoing the first button gently, then the second. A delayed reaction - but Debbie's hands fly up to grip the still-buttoned portion of her top, holding it close to her chest to stop Lou from going further. She stays silent out of sheer surprise and confusion at Lou's sudden behaviour, but Lou doesn't seem to want what she thinks. Debbie feels soft fingertips brushing against her collarbone, sweeping one side of her pajama top over to expose her right shoulder. She's still holding her top in place so nothing else is revealed, but Lou's eyes don't even wander, just linger on Debbie's shoulder. It's the shoulder that the Arc ball hit. Debbie sighs, studying Lou's features. The girl looks tired, like Constance said she would after her punishment, but she doesn't look annoyed, just sad. Lou brushes her fingers over the sun-kissed skin on Debbie's shoulder.

"Turns out, I can nullify abilities," Debbie murmurs with a hint of pride, giving a hesitant smile. 

Lou doesn't reciprocate, just nods, gaze still fixed on Debbie's shoulder, and Debbie feels her heart ache as her smile fades away. She reaches a hand out, wants to tilt Lou's chin up so that she'll look at Debbie again, but Lou winces and jerks back, short hair falling to cover the side of her face. Debbie retracts her hand on instinct, but makes a second attempt, brushing Lou's hair away this time, careful not to touch her face.

"That cat mask they put on you. It hurts you... doesn't it?"

Lou does look at her then, vulnerable and glassy-eyed for a split second, before she blinks it away.

"Lou," Debbie coaxes, tries to touch her arm, but Lou steps back. She fixes her jaw, apparent devastation and guilt swimming in her gray blue eyes.

_"I'm so glad you're okay,"_ she whispers, relief laced in every syllable.

But you're not, Debbie wants to say - wants to shake Lou out of her self-loathing - but before she can, her front door clicks shut and she's alone in her room again.


	5. Chapter 5

If you've ever been forced awake in the middle of the night, you would know how much of a struggle it is to fall back asleep. Debbie lies on her bed, the same position as before, but everything is different now. It feels like she's drifting, on another plane of reality, as the incident on the field replays over and over again in her mind, occasionally cutting to Lou's unexpected visit just minutes ago. She can still feel the thump of the ball on her shoulder, soothed by Lou's warm fingers pressed against the skin. Without the incident, she might’ve taken much longer to discover her abilities. It’s not everyday that you fear for your friend’s life and a flaming ball comes flying at you, in that specific order. The scene extends longer every time her brain hits rewind, until she’s eventually got the entire PE class whirling through her head. When she remembers the bit she’d played with Claude Becker during the water break, it hits her that maybe that could’ve been it.

Debbie closes her eyes, breathes, feels her body melding further into the mattress. Her fingers twitch involuntarily, wishing for the warm sensation Lou likes to surprise her with. 

Hell of a day. 

She sighs internally, curls under the duvet so her long hair splays out behind her. _Tomorrow will be better,_ she hears a voice eerily similar to her grandfather’s murmur before sleep overtakes her, sending her into a dreamscape of being back home in Florida, back when everything was stagnant but at least familiar.

It comes as no surprise that tomorrow isn’t much better, though it starts out sunny and bright.

Debbie meets Rose for breakfast like they agreed the day before, so Rose can take her to her first types class - for special type abilities. She doesn’t actually know if that’s where she belongs, but none of her friends are quick to claim her into their type class the previous day, all unsure about where nullification fits since they’ve never seen it before. They collectively agree that specials would be the safest bet, and Ms Xenia would surely have a better idea on where to put her if they’re wrong. Turns out, they’re absolutely right, and Xenia has no doubt about it, gasping in pure excitement when she tries to meddle with Debbie’s memories and partly fails.

“And you seem to have gotten a good first start at using it, too! Oh Debbie, this is wonderful. I knew I sensed a kinship between us the moment I first saw you. You felt it too, didn’t you? My, I just knew you were a special.”

Debbie shares an amused smile with Rose, grinning when she gets pulled to formally introduce herself in front of the class. They're almost all older than her, and it's small, there’s not quite as many people as there are in Constance’s somatics class, but everyone seems eager to welcome her into their flock - which is really all Debbie had hoped for. They train in nature, like the somatic students do, but in thicker vegetation - a forest type area at the far, _far_ back of the school that leads to raised canyon-like grounds and glittering water bodies. The landscape was created by elemental manipulation abilities from various staff and students, designed as the perfect training and holding ground for abilities reliant on natural environments. Tammy’s animals are dispersed throughout the different habitats, Rose explained to her when they were walking over. As are Juniper’s mild, non-toxic flowers that she doesn’t keep in her garden. Besides the two of their classmates, everyone else in the school, staff or student, are also free to use the forest, cliffs, lakes and ponds as they please. It seems peaceful and beautiful to Debbie so she’s a little surprised when Rose tells her that most people don’t come here unless they have to.

“Tammy’s got all sorts of animals living here. Lions, tigers, bears, snakes,” Rose shudders. “Without her around, kids get scared the animals will go out of control and attack.”

It’s a reasonable fear that Debbie doesn’t share. At least not yet. Maybe her opinion of these woods will change once she stumbles upon one of Tammy’s friends.

Xenia easily becomes one of Debbie’s favourite teachers when she decides to turn the lesson into introductions and ability demonstrations as a mini welcome session for Debbie. Debbie can practically see the pride bursting out of her as she cheers enthusiastically after every student finishes their show, as if she's seeing it all for the first time too.

Debbie shouldn’t know anyone, except Rose and Koa, the kid from her class who transfers his soul into objects, but she sees a couple of abilities that seem oddly familiar. The first is from a pastel-green-haired girl dressed oddly in PE clothes instead of a formal school attire. When it's her turn, she waddles into the pond nearby without a word and lays down flat until she disappears, fully submerged under the water. Debbie doesn’t quite get what’s happening because nothing _is_ happening. It’s only when her eyes start to sting from dryness that she realises how long she’s been staring, and how long the girl has been underwater. The girl eventually resurfaces, introduces herself to Debbie as Claire, the one who can breathe underwater, and Debbie immediately remembers the story Daphne told her during her first somatics class. Claire confirms that the story is absolutely true, laughs herself silly at how shell-shocked she was when her ability first got activated. The next time Debbie has a flashback, it’s when a charming, mischievous older male with dark messy hair hops onto Debbie’s shadow and starts to dance. Debbie’s horrified to find her body mimicking his actions to a T, completely devoid of control and a slave to the boy's every move. She tries to fight back, but it takes more than a minute of pure desperate concentration before her nullification kicks in and she regains control of her muscles. He pauses dancing midway, turns to her with a smirk.

“Impressive,” he grins, nodding in approval.

Debbie doesn’t know what to say, sinks to the ground in a sitting position and settles down with the rest of the class again as she feels her throat constrict from being reduced to feeling so utterly powerless with just one small step from the boy. She remembers Constance saying something about a boy who controls people through their shadows - but it couldn’t actually be him, could it? If it is, he’s supposed to be categorised under the dangerous ability type. He shouldn’t be here.

The lanky boy plonks down in a cross-legged sit beside Debbie, introducing himself as Levi and apologising for taking control of her body just then. He sounds genuine, not in a teasing or smug kind of way at all, like he knows exactly how invasive his ability really is and hopes Debbie doesn't hold it against him. She tells him it's okay, even asks him to do it again next time because she's determined to perfect her nullification against it.

"Why are you in specials if you're a dangerous ability type?"

He shrugs, eyes turning back to the next demonstration. "We train with our base ability types during type classes, but we have additional training sessions outside of curriculum time that's just for the dangerous types."

"After school?"

"Yeah."

"I heard you guys train at night too. Is that true?"

Levi stares ahead mutely, watches as a girl his age with short, heavily layered pink hair splits into a dozen copies of herself. The doppelganger ability, the girl, Rue, declares with a smile when she's done.

"Is it tiring? Spending that much time training?" Debbie asks again.

Levi looks over with an inquisitive frown.

"Why are you so curious about it?"

"No reason," Debbie says, trying her best to sound casual. "Just curious."

She sees the way Levi narrows his eyes at her in suspicion, then his eyes flit to something behind her and an amused expression settles.

"Would your _curiosity_ happen to have anything to do with Lou Miller?"

Debbie blinks in surprise, rapidly spins her head around to follow Levi's line of sight, but only sees Rose happily chatting with Claire.

"She's in your class, isn't she? With Rose?" Levi draws Debbie's attention back, asking with apparent innocence, but the mirth in his devious green eyes tells Debbie otherwise.

"Oh. Yeah, she is," Debbie mutters quietly, embarrassed at her eager response.

Levi chuckles to himself, lips quirked at the corner in amusement. "Got a thing for rebels?"

"Lou isn't-" Debbie rebuts defensively, but stops abruptly to quell the spike in her tone. "She isn't like that."

He nods slowly, a cheeky half-smile still plastered on his face, but Debbie senses the warmth, the kindness, the understanding, amidst the jokes. He ruffles Debbie's hair lightly - to her displeasure, laughing as he helps her up from the log she's sitting on. Xenia gathers them back around, boosts everyone's ego by praising them for their spectacular performances. She welcomes Debbie again, and Levi suddenly picks up her up by the waist, lifting her up lion-king-style as the class cheers enthusiastically, loud applause and whoops reverberating through the trees. She yelps and struggles against his hold, demanding to be put down, but he's careful not to lift her too high since she's wearing a skirt and Debbie can't kick him without self-exposing herself. He brings her down after a full minute, goofy wide grin that earns him a backhanded smack in his side.

"Asshole."

He laughs, carefree and unmoved, as the rest of the class comes to pat Debbie on the back in turn, throwing a farewell to Xenia and everyone else before running off to their individual classes. Debbie chuckles breathlessly to herself when Rose approaches her with a grin with Koa by her side, a little overwhelmed with everything but genuinely overjoyed that her types classmates are so loving towards her. Even Levi, _especially_ Levi, whose impish, easy-going behaviour reminds her so much of Danny that it makes Debbie feel at home and at ease even among this entirely foreign group of people.

Rose asks her how she found her first types lesson, though it wasn't really a lesson, and Debbie hums her contentment, declaring that it was good. By this point, it's habit that Debbie doesn't fully express her emotions, but Rose seems pleased with her answer anyway, looping her arm with Debbie's and hurrying Koa to keep up.

The day takes a downturn when Debbie gets to their actual class.

Lou misses first period, and Debbie spends the hour staring at the little glass square in the door, hoping beyond reason that she’ll show up. She tries to shake herself out of it to follow the teaching of Mr Jairo, their quirky social studies teacher, but Debbie only gets bits and pieces of information. It helps that he’s entertaining, attempts to insert humour to make American history a little more interesting, but the content is drier than the Sahara Desert and honestly, not even the wettest figurative water could hope to make it better.

Time doesn’t fly, it drags and drags - is there anything slower than a snail? Debbie doesn’t know, but if there were, it feels slower than even that. Lou misses second period too, and by lunch, Debbie’s certain she won’t be seeing the girl for the rest of the day. She glances at the back of the class, spots Tammy getting up, bunny in hand, and Gemini walking over to her.

“Gem tries to keep Tammy company whenever Lou doesn’t show up,” Constance explains from beside her. “She doesn’t always accept the offer, but sometimes she does, so Gem asks every time anyway.”

“Why don’t we just ask her to come with all of us?”

“We’ve tried, but Tammy’s not much of a crowd person.”

Debbie chews on her lip, considering, then Gemini is walking back towards them without Tammy, and Debbie refuses to accept it, makes a split second decision to go over herself. She passes a confused Gemini, who turns back to watch her.

“I’m Debbie.”

Tammy regards her mildly, a placid expression on her sweet face. Her hairband is a deep green today, matching the neatly tied ribbon scarf under her collar.

“Tammy,” the girl says, clipped but soft at the same time. Her voice is a slightly lower register than Debbie expected.

“Do you want to have lunch with us?”

“Gemini’s already asked. I’m good.”

“I was asking the bunny, actually.”

Tammy stares at her. She watches as Debbie bends down to greet her furry friend at eye-level, smiling as she reaches out and rubs his little head with her index finger. In her arms, she feels her friend pushing his head up to meet Debbie’s touch, nuzzling back.

“I think she wants to come.”

“He,” Tammy corrects.

Debbie nods. “ _He_ wants to come. How can you say no to that adorable face? I mean, you could just leave him with us if you’d really rather be somewhere else.”

Tammy looks down at the pair of wide, glassy irises staring up at her, pleading puppy-dog-like eyes that no animal on earth should be allowed to have, much less a little snow white bunny with the cutest bob of a tail. Tammy looks up, glares. Like hell she’d leave her baby with those girls. Debbie smiles, knows she’s won as she nudges and tugs a resigned Tammy along. She hears cheers and claps as they approach her friends, sees both Kiara and Gemini grinning as they break apart from a reconciliatory hug for yesterday’s fight, and suddenly, automatically, everything is right with the world again. 

Debbie spends lunch glued to Tammy’s side, occasionally patting and bending to talk to her bunny so Tammy feels a little more comfortable with the attention taken off of her.

“His name is Mr Lamington.”

It takes Tammy half of lunch before she finally introduces her rabbit. Still, Debbie’s happy she introduces him at all. The bunny is clearly immensely important to her.

“Mr Lamington?” Debbie asks with raised brows.

“Lamingtons are an Australian type of cake.”

Debbie frowns. “Oh, when did you move here? You sound American.”

Tammy pauses. “Lou named him. She loves lamingtons, says they taste like home.”

Debbie nods slowly, thinking back on Lou’s manner of speaking. She’d always heard a lilt, something off in her accent that Debbie hasn’t had enough exposure to to identify right off the bat. Having Tammy confirm that Lou is Australian only serves to make Debbie miss her voice even more.

“Where’s Lou today?” Debbie asks quietly, makes sure the rest of the girls at the table can’t hear her.

Tammy stares at her blankly for a second. “I don’t know,” she says, and Debbie thinks it sounds honest.

“Does she always disappear like this?”

Tammy shrugs, looking down at Mr Lamington as she strokes his soft fur mindlessly. She looks sad, conflicted, and Debbie ends up offering Tammy half of her oatmeal cookie to cheer the girl up.

“This is my favourite thing in the entire cafeteria,” Tammy murmurs between small bites of the cookie, and Debbie chuckles, offering her another half of her own half. Tammy laughs for the first time, shakes her head and mutters an “it’s okay, thanks”. She allows Debbie to hold Mr Lamington on the way back to class, which shouldn’t be such a huge deal, but it’s _miraculous,_ according to Constance. Her other friends agree. They’ve never even seen Lou carry the bunny, which is ridiculous, considering Lou literally named him.

It comes as no surprise that the Australian doesn’t show up for third period either, and before Debbie knows it, it’s time for their second and final type class of the day and the week. It’s Saturday tomorrow, something her friends have been squealing about the entire school day. They’re thrilled beyond measure to get to show Debbie around - a proper tour - unlike the sorry attempt Daphne gave on her first day. They’ve been suggesting places, compiling a list so long Debbie suspects they’ll need more than the weekend to cover. After Xenia dismisses them from science lesson, the girls and Dom quickly decide on a time to meet for breakfast the next morning. Just when they’re about to leave, she sees Tammy heading for the door and jogs over, stopping her to give Mr Lamington a last pat and Tammy a last smile before she heads off to types with Rose and Koa.

She talks to Koa a little bit more on the way there, finds out that he can literally possess anything inanimate, though it wavers sometimes.

"I still don't have full control of it," Koa shrugs with a dopey smile. There hasn’t been a second the boy’s looked anything other than happy, Debbie realises. His resting face alone is probably more cheerful than Debbie’s ever been her whole life.

"Most people don't," Rose explains. "Hardly any of the students here, even the older ones, are able to magnify or manipulate their abilities perfectly. There's usually always a pretty tight limit. Except for most of the dangerous types. It's more of a risk for them not to have full control, so they train a lot to keep it contained."

"And they wear suppressors too," Debbie says from memory of what Constance told her.

"Yeah. The beanie Levi wears?"

Debbie frowns at Koa. "It's a suppressor?" 

"Mmhm," the boy hums, jogs and pushes his palms against the concrete block along the pathway and uses it as leverage to swing his legs over, as if he’s doing parkour. It’s unnecessary - Debbie and Rose just go around it - but it makes the girls chuckle anyway. While Solara merely looks like the sun, Koa embodies it, cheery and bursting with energy, nearly always.

“Does Nineball make the suppressors too?”

Rose shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t know. Perhaps. She makes lots of things for the school administration.”

When they arrive back at the forest, Levi is quick to jog over to mess up her hair again. He ignores Debbie’s scowl, throws his arm roughly over her shoulder and pulls her to his side to walk with them. Rue, the tall, slim, replicating girl with shoulder length pink hair, walks beside him and introduces herself, laughing as she looks down to see Debbie’s head caught in what seems like an uncomfortable headlock.

“Let up, Levi, you’ll crush her windpipe.”

Levi releases her, and Debbie thanks Rue after casting a long, irritated glare at the boy. It’s good to know there’s someone Levi actually listens to, so she knows who to turn to the next time she has the urge to elbow him in the gut, but can’t.

“Welcome back everyone!” Xenia cheers. 

There’s a man beside her this time, middle-aged with chiseled features and a kind of sophisticated charm. Under the thick black glasses, white-blue checkered dress shirt, black pants and camel blazer, Debbie can’t help but notice her new types teacher looks an awful lot like Clark Kent.

“Hi everyone. And welcome, Debbie.” He smiles kindly, and Debbie thanks him with a small bow of her head. “We’ll be splitting you guys up again for today’s class,” he continues, addressing the whole class again. “Pairs with me, solos with Ms Xenia.”

Her classmates start to shift, some moving away, some staying put. Debbie turns to Rose for help.

“You’re in pairs,” she says, “we stay here with Mr Gavin.”

When the movement starts to settle, Gavin claps and rubs his hands together like he’s getting himself ready to work.

“Today is all about amplification, testing your limits,” he says with a smile. “Remember our lesson on control last week?” He waits for the class to respond with a series of nods and shrugs. “Well, I want you to forget about it,” he says, then quickly corrects himself in a chuckle, “not entirely, of course. We don’t need anyone getting hurt. But for the next hour, we want you all to try to maximise your powers, push yourself and take it to the next level. What you might find is that beyond just strengthening your abilities, some of you might even experience it evolving. For example, from teleporting through mirrors to teleporting through all reflective surfaces. Just because you are all gifted with abilities, doesn’t mean you don’t still have hidden potential. It is a rarity though, and takes a lot of patience, so don’t be too disappointed if you don’t find your abilities expanding immediately. The most important thing about today’s lesson is building strength, endurance and resistance to withstand a higher magnitude of power than you normally confine yourselves to.”

He pauses for a second to take a breath. “All right!” He claps his hands again. “I think we’ll do self-pairing today. Everyone partner up. If there’s an odd one out, the last group can form a three. Just make sure everyone gets involved. Watch out for each other and call me if anything gets out of hand, okay? Some of you might need more time and concentration to amplify your abilities, so don't be too hard on yourself and just keep trying. Let me know if you need help.”

Debbie and Rose form a pair without needing to verbally confirm with each other and back up to put some distance between themselves and the other students, still staying within Gavin’s view. Rose goes first, splaying her hands out and unravelling the top layer of cloth strips from around her arms to float around her. Debbie stands five metres away, holding out her pinkie for Rose to try to wrap around. When she does, Debbie moves further back, and Rose tries again. They do this again and again until the fabric starts to waver, Rose losing control of it and absorbing it back onto herself. She pants, breathing hard as the cloth wraps itself over her forearm.

“That’s still a tiny bit further than I’ve ever gone,” Rose says.

Debbie smiles with pride. “Nice work, Rose.”

“Thank you, Debbie. Your turn now.”

“How should we do this?”

Rose considers this. “Your nullification seems to work better on non-contact abilities like Lou’s fire and Levi’s shadow manipulation, but it isn’t as effective on contact-threats.”

“Contact-threats?”

The strip of cloth Rose had retracted earlier unwinds itself from around her arm again and moves towards Debbie smoothly and slowly, Rose in full control since they’re much closer now. Debbie doesn’t move, just frowns. 

“What are you doing?”

Rose smiles softly, and suddenly the cloth shoots out to circle around Debbie’s neck, squeezing her throat hard enough that Debbie actually fears for her life, and yet she can still feel it tightening further with every passing nanosecond. She grabs at the fabric frantically, pupils blown wide in a panic and mouth releasing a horrific strangled noise. The whole thing only lasts for ten seconds tops but has Debbie crumpling to the ground, gasping for air when Rose finally loosens her grip.

“Threats like that,” Rose says somewhat apologetically, coming to pat Debbie’s back gently as she takes deep breaths to rebalance her oxygen to carbon dioxide ratio. “Abilities that enhance individuals so they don’t have to attack by blasting their abilities on you directly.”

“How on earth am I supposed to nullify that, Rose?” Debbie coughs out, more incredulous than angry.

“Forcefields,” her friend replies easily. “If you can project your nullification into some sort of a forcefield, you can stop physical threats from even touching you."

Debbie sighs, feeling her breathing stabilise and panic settle. “Okay, let’s try it.”

Right when they’re about to start, Gavin comes over to check in.

“You girls doing all right?”

Debbie turns to face him.

“Yes, Mr Gavin. We were just about to start with Debbie’s.”

“Ah I see. Pardon me, but what is it that you do again, Debbie?”

“Nullification.”

“Oh, wow. That’s quite the ability. And are you comfortable with using it yet?”

“No, not really. So far, it’s only worked when I’m scared.”

“Yes, that’s usually how it is in the beginning, triggered by intense emotions, but you get better at it with practice. What are you guys planning to do now?”

“I can’t seem to nullify abilities like Rose’s where they aren’t used directly on me, so she suggested that I try to create forcefields.”

“Ah, yes,” Gavin nods, flashing Rose an impressed smile. “That could work against contact-threats, if you were able to do it. Good thinking, guys. Remember, patience and determination is key. Keep working on it.”

He leaves, and Debbie and Rose get to it. They try it once, twice, thrice, but by the fourth time, Debbie is frustrated enough that she calls for a timeout. Rose has been there before, so she completely understands.

“I wasn’t born with cloth for skin,” she explains when Debbie sighs that it must be nice for Rose to have grown up with her abilities - managing it must’ve come so naturally to her.

Her statement surprises Debbie.

“So you were born with real skin, then?”

Rose nods. “The change happened over about four days, last year. My mother is powered too, so they were kind of expecting it. Not the actual ability, because mine is really quite rare, but I think they were always mentally prepared for the possibility.”

“My parents were too, I think. They were always looking forward to the day we’d get to come study at Arcane. Now I think they were just waiting for our abilities to show.”

“Our?”

“I have an older brother. Had,” she corrects herself slowly. “He and my parents passed away in a car accident.”

She hears Rose exhale sharply. “I’m awfully sorry, Debbie.”

Debbie purses her lips at the ground in a weak smile, shaking her head lightly. “It’s okay.”

They sit in silence for a while, watching the other students spar to kill the last few minutes of class. It’s gotten easier for Debbie to think and talk about her family without feeling like she’s being suffocated from the inside out. Time heals, it’s true, but easier doesn’t always mean easy, and the thought of the most important people in her life struggling for breath six feet underwater still haunts her to this day.

She keeps her mind off of it by keeping her eyes on Rue and Levi. Their sparring is intense, merciless, and they are both so incredibly skilled and strategic that it’s like watching an action movie come to life. Rue is split into a dozen different copies of herself, all relentlessly coming for Levi, but the boy is smart - never allows himself to be surrounded. He steps on shadows, takes down the doppelgängers one by one, but hardly makes any progress because every time he succeeds, another copy just pops right out of Rue. Levi spins around wildly, trying to find the shadow of the original, which may not sound that difficult but takes much more effort than you’d think - all thanks to Rue’s martial arts expertise. She lunges at him, kicks, punches, trips him over - a mistake, because from his vantage point on the ground, he lays a mere finger on an oncoming shadow, yanks his arm rough enough that the doppelgänger crashes to the ground and dissipates, then does the same to two others. Keeping his leg close to the ground, he sweeps it rapidly into one of the doppelgänger’s calves, knocking her over while he presses a hand onto the shadow nearest to him, using the ground as leverage to push himself up then flicks his hand to toss the doppelgänger into another copy, effectively taking them both down.

Levi eventually figures it out by eyeing the copies and studying the patterns of replication. Now that he knows exactly which one he should be going after, he stops trying to eliminate the others. Sacrificing her copies and letting them regenerate from the original is precisely how Rue confuses her opponents, because being _pulled_ and _pulled from_ isn’t distinctly obvious when you’re trying to ward off another ten black-belt fighters from tearing the skin off your back. On his feet, Levi’s got far less body parts to slam onto shadows, but a lightbulb moment flashes and he realises he only needs to get one. He takes control of the nearest doppelgänger, well aware of the others following her closely behind, all rushing for him, and turns her around, makes her sprint straight at the last girl in the entire pack. Right when the doppelgängers go in for the pounce, all grinning smugly as he falls on his butt, two centimetres from mauling him to death, the one he’s controlling decks Rue across the face, forcing her onto the ground. And in that split second, the pink-haired ninjas around him fall too, vanishing all at once, leaving him a heaving, panic-stricken mess in the dirt.

The round of applause is the first thing that jolts Levi and Rue back to reality, finally realising that they’ve gained an audience out of their classmates.

Levi hears Rue groan from a distance away, and turns to see her cradling her jaw in her hand as she glares sharply at him.

“Jackass. Almost had you there.”

Levi laughs breathlessly, still recovering, because Rue was absolutely right. It was a damn close call. He pushes himself up once he’s sure his lungs are fully intact and functional. Rue accepts his hand, lets him help her to her feet.

“Now _that_ was a spar,” Xenia cheers with a loud whoop. “What a way to end the week!”

Gavin laughs, nodding in agreement. “Make sure you get some ice for that, Rue,” he says, pointing at his own jaw. Rue groans in acknowledgment, but there’s no blood, so the teachers aren't too worried.

“Okay! Hopefully this was a fruitful session for all of you. We know you must all be exhausted, so... Have a wonderful weekend, get some rest, and we’ll see you all first thing on Monday.”

The students disperse slowly, taking time to actually wish their classmates a good weekend instead of rushing off to freedom like Debbie thought every normal student would.

“Nice meeting you, Debbie. See you next week guys.” 

Debbie waves back when she sees Rue waving at her, before gathering her belongings and strolling off, probably to the nurse’s office.

“Do you want to get dinner?” Rose asks from beside her, throwing a wave at Rue before she faces Debbie again.

“Yeah,” Debbie says, turning when she feels a hand on her head.

“Catch you guys Monday,” Levi grins.

“We’re getting dinner. Wanna come?”

Debbie watches the rise and almost-fall of Levi’s chest, but a chuckle displaces the sigh at the last second.

“Nah, I’ve got somewhere to be.”

“Extra training?” Debbie asks immediately, directly, earning a blank stare from Levi.

Rose shifts uncomfortably on her feet, leaving to say bye to Claire so the two have time to talk.

"Can I come?" Debbie asks boldly, voice firm so it covers her anxiety and anticipation.

Levi scoffs lightly, shaking his head - more in disbelief than actual rejection, though he obviously doesn't say yes.

"You're _that_ smitten, huh?"

He asks like he's amused, almost teasing, and Debbie bites the inside of her bottom lip as she stares at him.

"It's not like that."

The crease between Debbie's brows tells him that she isn't even sure herself. She pauses, stares at him in quiet contemplation as he waits for an explanation she isn't ready to give. Debbie isn't shy, but she isn't one to blabber either. And for some reason, beyond just habit, Debbie also feels the inexplicable need to keep her and Lou's interactions off the record, close to the vest, like they're somehow doing something wrong that needs to be kept secret, though that is definitely not the case. Still, she blinks Levi's curiosity away, refusing to say more.

"It's fine," Debbie says. "I was just asking."

Levi nods slowly, chewing on the inside of his cheek.

"A'ight. Seeya next week, Debbie."

He leaves just as Rose comes back to take her to dinner. They grab takeaway again, because Rose wants to finish all of her homework by tonight, so she can spend the weekend working on her new sketches and hanging out with the others without worry.

It's harder to prevent her mind from wandering when Debbie's alone in her room. Without teachers to listen to, notes to jot down, abilities to nullify, it is infinitely harder to steer her thoughts away from the human enigma that is Lou Miller. Her only distraction, the crunching of carrots between her teeth, proves way too soft to block out even the faintest of Lou's whispers. 

She has her own, selfish reasons for wanting to see Lou again, though she would never admit it out loud, but at this point, Debbie just wants to know that the girl is fine. The way Lou jerked from her touch - she remembers a wave of nausea hitting her right when the realisation did. And to think Debbie had looked on her with such awe and fascination that first day, clueless that that white kitten mask was putting her in so much pain.

Debbie sighs in frustration, gripping her eyes shut because she desperately wants to stop Lou's agony, but knows she can't. Her only hope is to convince Lou to start following the rules. If she doesn't rebel, she won't get punished. As simple as that. Why, why on earth won't that girl just _listen_.

"Lou?" she whispers into the silence, testing just how sensitive Lou's ears really are. "Can you hear me?"

No response.

"If you can, could you come over?"

No response.

Debbie finishes her food, showers, prepares for bed, but there's still no sign from Lou. She decides to drag it out a little more, writes another letter to her grandfather in a bid to feel closer to home.

 _I'm doing well,_ she writes, and words flow out of her like she's back on her grandfather's lap, in a hardwood chair out on the porch, watching birds flit around the front garden with their delicate, colourful wings and sweet little songs.

_I miss the sun, the warmth, the freedom, but I don't hate it here. Lessons are interesting, the work isn't too difficult, and everyone is really nice. I got new classmates today too, because I ~~got my~~ unlocked... it. You know what I mean. It wasn't as exciting as I thought it'd be, because I got into some kind of fight with a friend. I'm not sure if it was an actual fight, but she didn't come for classes today. I know what you're going to say. I shouldn't hang out with kids like that. But this girl isn't all bad, despite what everyone seems to think. She doesn't ask me to skip classes or break rules with her. I don't think she wants me to. I think she's hurting, grandpa. I want to help her, but I don't know how. Will you write back and tell me what I should do? You always know exactly what to say._

_I hope you aren't too lonely over there. Who am I kidding. You're way more popular than I am. I'm sure you've already thrown countless parties in the house without me around. Please don't let your friends sleep in my bed or enter my room while I'm away. I left too many personal items lying around. Pictures and letters I don't want to lose._

_Oh, that reminds me. Do you remember what mom, dad and grandma... did? Again, you know what I mean. I understand if you can't write about it. You can tell me the stories over our beach walks when I get back in June. I was just curious. I still have so many questions to ask you._

_I miss you, grandpa. Nothing is the same without you. Take care and I'll see you soon._

_Love,  
Debbie_

And even after all that, the hours of waiting and whispering, Lou is still nothing but radio silent when Debbie finally crawls into bed and allows herself to drift.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> comments are so appreciated!


	6. Chapter 6

When faded daylight pours into her room the following morning, Debbie soaks it in with a cat stretch, letting her back arch off the bed so her spine pops. 

It's still a little early - two hours before she has to meet her friends - and Debbie could actually get a couple more minutes of sleep if she really wanted to.

She's still mentally trying to shove her grandfather's wake up call aside to clock in those extra minutes when her body rolls itself out of bed. When her groggy brain finally catches up, she groans at the betrayal, hunched over both legs which hang off the bed where she's seated. Now, with the bottom half of her body already swung over the side of the bed, even lying back down seems like too much effort. She counts to ten, forces herself up on nine, shuffling slowly across the vinyl floor and into the bathroom so she can wash up. It turns out to be a spectacular decision - because when she gets out, Karla is there to greet her, right outside her bathroom door, a grin so wide it should look cheerful but scares Debbie into a piercing scream. She stumbles backwards, nearly falls to the ground, but Karla skids forward quickly and grabs hold of her arm to steady her. A red beam sweeps over her shaking body.

"Good morning, Debbie! How are you this fine morning?"

"Dear _God,_ Karla! Why are you in my room?!" Debbie yanks her arm out of Karla's hold. Her voice, scratchy from being unused for hours, cracks when she screeches.

"I've come to collect your laundry," the robot says happily. "Saturday is laundry day."

Debbie squeezes her eyes shut, bringing her palm up to press against her temple as she collects herself.

"You could've knocked on the front door, you know," Debbie mutters. She turns to grab the laundry hamper from behind her.

"I did, several times, but there was no answer. I presumed you were still asleep."

Debbie sighs as she hands the hamper over, trying to ease her scowl back into more neutral territory. How could she expect a robot to recognise social boundaries?

“If you leave this by the door next time, I could just come in to pick it up and leave without disturbing your sleep,” Karla smiles, rolling along slowly to keep pace with Debbie’s strolling.

Okay, so maybe this robot has a higher EQ than Debbie expected.

“Oh. Yeah, I’ll do that next week." There's an awkward pause when they get to the front door. "Thanks."

“Of course,” Karla beams. “Your body scan showed an accelerated heart rate, dilated pupils, raised eyebrows and eyelids - symptoms consistent with surprise and mild fear. I hope I didn't scare you too badly, Debbie. Sorry about that," the robot grins sheepishly.

“That’s okay...” Debbie sighs. “I just wasn’t expecting to see you.”

The same red light from Karla’s eyes run over Debbie again. “The symptoms appear to have subsided. What a relief,” the robot smiles, mocking a 'phew!' gesture, earning an amused chuckle from Debbie. "I'm off to do my rounds. You have a wonderful day, Debbie."

"Wait, Karla?" Debbie calls abruptly just as the robot rolls past the door frame. She peeks her head out to look down both sides of the corridor, dropping her voice into a hesitant whisper. "Um, can you tell me which room Lou Miller is in?"

"Of course," the robot flashes Debbie a brilliant smile as her eyes whirl in their sockets for a moment. "Lou is in room 13D," she declares, a little too loudly for Debbie’s taste, once her irises spin back into place. Nevertheless, Debbie mutters a soft ‘ah’, surprised at how much easier that was than she'd expected.

"Thank you, Karla."

"No problem at all! Can I help you with anything else?"

Debbie shakes her head. "I’m all right for now.”

“Superb! See you later, Debbie.”

Debbie watches as Karla turns on her wheels, skidding down the hallway to the next room where she lifts her empty palm to the key pad and is instantly granted access. With a hum, Debbie heads back inside and shuts the door behind her.

13D. Debbie tosses the room number around in her head, contemplating her next move. She’s not _actually_ contemplating, of course, just trying to convince herself that she is. Truth is, she’s already made up her mind. How could she not? She’s had Lou Miller circling her thoughts for hours on end, feeling helpless, but trying her hardest not to show it. And now Debbie has a way to actually find her. Better yet, Debbie has a way to find her where she can’t slip out of reach again.

She changes out of her pajamas quickly, tugging on a gray jumper, dark-wash denim jeans and black chelsea boots, throwing her hair up in a messy ponytail. Her time check before she leaves the room shows half past eight. She has to be at the cafeteria in an hour. That’s plenty of time, right? Debbie isn’t sure. She’s already halfway down the corridor, striding purposefully across the carpeted floor and into the elevator when it arrives.

She pushes 13, the highest floor, and waits impatiently for the doors to close. Her hands start to fidget, fingers clasping, unclasping, thumbs rubbing against the other. What should she say when she gets there? She realises that she wouldn’t have decided on anything even if she had her entire lifetime to think. This isn’t like her at all.

Debbie does well under pressure; has always been able to find her footing even when thrown into the deepest of waters. Case in point, her family’s death. So imagine her confusion at being knocked off her metaphorical feet by an eleven year old she hardly even sees. Confusion would be an understatement. It’s more frustration, of not being able to keep her emotions in check - a skill she thought she’d mastered long ago - and finding herself in foreign territory, forced to make sense of feelings that Debbie can’t seem to wrap her head around.

When the elevator dings and the doors pull apart, Debbie feels her heart start thumping. She schools her features, ensures her anxiety can't be seen on the surface, and stares down the hallway. It's carpeted maroon, with the same gold wallpaper plastered across the walls, but there's definitely a difference. A littler colder, quieter? Something in the air. Debbie can't put a finger on it, but it makes the hair on the back of her neck stand.

She takes a tentative step forward, then lets her feet carry her the rest of the way - past 13A on the right, and 13B on the left - further down, until she stops in front of room 13D. The door is white, exactly the same shade as hers. Debbie's eyes dart to the left, to the right. She clenches her fist, releases it, clenches it again, then raises it to rap against the door in three gentle knocks. She waits, wishing she had Lou's ears so it wouldn't sound so painfully silent. She almost whispers Lou's name, but figures there's a higher chance of the door being opened if she doesn't make her identity known. Though she wouldn't be surprised if Lou already knew somehow. Debbie knocks again, louder this time.

She hears the click in a lock on her third try, the sound of a door handle being turned, and her heart seizes in her chest. It's one of those things, where you think you know what you want but don't actually expect to get it. Until you do. Then every part of you shuts down, and you have to wait for your sensibility to reboot. Debbie's in that reboot phase, but the seconds of buffering feel like hours of technical difficulty, and she really hopes that Lou can't hear the thundering in her rib cage.

But the door before her is still, even after a minute. 

She turns to her left when she feels someone staring. There's a girl standing outside room 13A. Long, dirty blonde hair that cascades well past her shoulders like Debbie's, and piercing blue eyes that wander over Debbie like Lou's. The girl is older, taller, prettier than anyone Debbie's ever seen in real life, at least from where she's standing. Even from a distance, the girl is all delicate, soft features and an air of enthralling mystery. She stares at Debbie, not harshly, not curiously, just stares, blinking evenly as she rakes her eyes over Debbie's body, then at Lou's door. Debbie stares back wordlessly until the girl turns to leave, calling for the elevator and stepping in once it arrives.

Debbie blows out the breath she didn't realise she was holding, shifting her attention back to the door beside her. She almost knocks again, but turns her wrist to press her palm flat against the wood with a sigh instead. If Lou wanted to answer, she would've by now. It takes everything in her to hold back a yell, but Debbie refuses to embarrass herself further - isn't desperate enough to make a fool of herself by screaming in an empty corridor at nine in the morning. She storms away, dejected and angry at herself for harboring these unwanted, unrequited feelings; frustrated at Lou for shutting her out.

An hour was more than enough time, apparently, considering Debbie's still thirty minutes early when she approaches the central building. She decides to make a pit stop at the park nearby - the hidden spot Lou had led her to previously - to pass the time. It gnaws at her insides. She's never been this way before, feeling up a storm she doesn't know how to tame. When she gets to their spot, she lifts her eyes to the skies, using her hands to shield them from the light, searching the trees for a certain blue-eyed pyromaniac. Every disappointment makes Debbie ache all over again, and she wonders how much more she can take before her heart well and truly shatters. Lowering herself to meet the grass, Debbie leans against the bark of the tree as she takes in the peaceful quiet. She feels as small as she reckons she looks, but grants herself a pass since there isn't anyone around. Besides, she suspects she won't have the chance to entertain her thoughts for the rest of the day once she meets her friends. 

As it turns out, her brain quite welcomes the break. When she reaches their usual table, Constance, Kiara and Dom are already there to greet her with hugs and grins. Everyone is in a splendid mood, just as she'd expected, and Debbie catches the thrill simply through close proximity. They start their busy day with a perfect breakfast, ordering up a feast of omelettes, pancakes, waffles and fruit to share.

"Okay, can someone lay down the itinerary for today again?" Constance asks when they're finishing off the last few melon cubes from the platter.

Gemini fishes out an actual piece of paper from her skirt pocket, unfolding it and handing it to Constance. "I compiled the places you guys suggested yesterday and made a convenient route from the cafeteria, ending at The Terrain."

"As expected. You're the best, Gem."

They pack up the tableware, returning them on trays before they head out. Debbie follows them to the exit at the other side of the cafeteria, all the way across from the entrance she'd taken in the morning, and it leads them into one of the high school education buildings. It's the quickest way to their first real stop, the administrative building, which Debbie remembers as the first building she'd stepped foot in when she first arrived here. It was just a few days ago. She still has the memory fresh in the back of her mind - of Daphne, and, and...

"You've been here, haven't you?" Bianca asks as they walk in.

The first floor is as big as Debbie remembers. Off-white marble tiling across the mostly-empty lobby.

Debbie nods. "Ms Daphne brought me here on my first day."

"Ah. Well, this is where the staff have their offices. Including the teachers, and the school counselor. There's a reception counter too," Bianca explains, knocking her head back at the lady perched behind a large, varnished wooden desk who pays them no mind at all. "We don't come in here very often, but if you need to talk to one of the teachers or get help for any miscellaneous things, the reception desk is a good place to start. Oh, and the nurses' and doctor's offices are in here too. Second floor."

When they step out of the building, Constance points to the right. "There's a park down this path, then the boys' dorms behind." She points to the left, the path that Daphne led Debbie down to get to the administrative building when she first got here. "That leads to the school gate."

They take the path straight ahead instead, back into the same high school building, because the path on the left sticks too close to the high walls surrounding the school property and therefore too far from any of the actual facilities they're planning to visit.

"The building next to this one is also for the high school kids. There's way more of them, so they need the space to have more classrooms and labs."

"Why?"

"What do you mean why?" Constance asks as she mindlessly twirls the ends of the string laced through the hood of her hoodie.

"Why are there so many more high school students than elementary?"

"Everyone here is born with the genetic component for superhuman abilities, but our bodies don't express it from birth. It happens at different times for different people. Rose and I both came in last year, around the same time, but Gem's been here for three years now. Nineball's been here since... man, ages ago, but all of us in the elementary branch are considered rare cases. There are usually a couple more new students with every new year, but the older kids say admissions only really spike in the first few years of high school. That's the average age for abilities to start showing."

Debbie wonders if Danny's abilities would have shown themselves if he'd just had a little more time.

They arrive back at the central building, and for the first time, despite having been here multiple times already, Debbie finds herself at the elevator area in the corner of the cafeteria. While they wait, she studies the panel right above the elevator buttons, which lists the different facilities in the building and their respective floors. There's an absurd amount of them, which explains why the central building is the biggest and busiest in the school. They go in ascending order of the levels to make sure they cover everything.

The commercial floor, right above the cafeteria, is also nicknamed 'the marketplace'. Walking out the elevator, Debbie sees a unisex hair salon, with both hairdressers and barbers; a stationery shop, fully stocked with an impressive array of art supplies; and a variety of other retail stores, selling all sorts of things - from floor-length floral maxi dresses to one-piece swimsuits - every apparel and accessory Debbie could possibly think of. It's no Galleria Mall, but with the space it has, the marketplace definitely doesn't disappoint. They make a round, and Debbie chuckles when Kiara runs into one of the stores to don an intricately woven straw hat. She spins around, grinning as she picks up a baseball cap from the rack and scoops it onto Dom's head. It turns into a mini fitting session, and even Debbie gets roped right in when Rose pulls a soft pink scarf around her.

The next floor is a full scale gym, with a ceiling much higher than the cafeteria’s. They don’t tour the place, because it’s Saturday and none of them are really keen on walking through a sweaty crowd of mostly smelly teenage boys. Even from where they’re standing by the elevator, Debbie can see students at the far side of the room, presumably with superhuman strength, juggling heavy weights as if they’re ping pong balls. On the treadmill, there are two people whirring in a blur, going way too fast for Debbie to even make out their faces, much less identify their gender.

The floor above holds the library. It’s a grand, exceptionally exquisite-looking space that looks like it came straight out of a Harry Potter book. There are movable, wooden shelves that slide on rollers along the walls, and more stationary ones scattered throughout the room, all filled to the brim with books. Debbie walks around in quiet awe, scanning the different sections that are dedicated to different genres, careful not to disturb the students who are reading or studying at the tables provided. There are beanbags in one corner of the room, and tall stacks of books lying by shelves that have no room for more. _There isn’t a librarian,_ Gemini whispers to Debbie. The place just runs itself. Everyone puts everything back when they’re done with them, and the security scanners make sure no one leaves with an un-borrowed item. Right before they leave, Gemini demonstrates how to borrow a book using her room key card, which also serves as their student ID, but slips it through the returns slot on their way out.

The grand hall takes up the entire floor above. It’s a big empty room filled with hundreds of chairs arranged neatly in rows in front of a high stage, framed by thick maroon drapes that are pulled and tied symmetrically to either side of the stage. This is where they have their assembly sessions, when the principals decide to hold mass gatherings to relay announcements.

The last floor, all the way on top, is by far the busiest. The entertainment floor. Complete with mini theatre and karaoke rooms that are available for booking, as well as a legitimate arcade with numerous coin-ops such as pinball and pac-man, this might be the most overwhelming of all the floors. And the 80s retro decor really puts it over the top. Granted, Debbie understands why having an entertainment centre is absolutely crucial in managing a horde of children and teenagers locked up within towering brick perimeter walls. What else would young people do on the weekends?

They leave the building through the entrance Debbie usually takes to enter the cafeteria, the one closer to the girls’ dorms.

“How was types yesterday?”

Debbie looks over at Gemini, who’s walking by her side.

“It was okay. I’m still working on...” Debbie wiggles her fingers in front of her.

“It takes a while. Especially since you can’t really practice your ability on your own. If you ever need something to nullify, I’d be happy to help where I can.”

“Me too!” Kiara squeals into Debbie’s ear suddenly, gripping her hands on and popping her head over Debbie’s shoulder to scare her. Debbie jumps, groaning in frustration as she shoves Kiara away lightly. Everyone laughs, and Debbie rolls her eyes in mock annoyance as Kiara hugs her from behind, an amused laugh bubbling from her lips. The path they’re walking down is a familiar wind to the park Debbie went to this morning. Debbie keeps her expression placid, suppresses the urge to look to the secluded spot she’d spent the morning gathering her thoughts, afraid the others might catch her gaze and start to wonder. Thankfully, the others don’t spare the spot a second glance, leading her right past the tall bushes that hide it, making a left further and further into the space.

“This is another park we have,” Bianca says, walking hand-in-hand with Juniper, “but the cool thing about this one is that there’s a playground.” Bianca points, and Debbie hears the high-pitched squeals from the younger children playing on said playground before she even sees it. There's an eye-catching purple slide, wound beside platforms of increasing height, raised on stands that allow easy access and climbing for the young ones. There are swings nearby as well, and monkey bars, and a wooden seesaw painted blue.

“The lower elementary school students come here for play time almost every single day, especially on the weekends,” Juniper adds, voice soft as always.

“Yeah, but other than that, nobody really comes here," Kiara says with a shrug. "It’s too near the school gate, which means it's far from everything else - and from the girls’ dorm, you have to walk past the central building to even get here, which most people obviously can't be bothered to - so we usually just leave this place for the little ones to make a ruckus." She turns to Gemini. "What’s next on the list?”

“The garden!” Juniper exclaims in excitement, pitch skyrocketing way beyond the highest frequency Debbie thought was humanly possible.

Gemini chuckles, taking them down the pathway to the left once they exit the park. “This goes to the girls’ dorms, but you probably already know that.” They stroll down, then veer off onto another path to the left again. When Debbie walks past the other dorm building beside theirs, she sees a long, elongated greenhouse that’s been blocked from her view all this time. Debbie is in absolute awe when Juniper presses her thumb against the electrical lock pad of the greenhouse and takes them inside. The colourful flowers are stunning, blooming in their allocated spaces to create a tidy work of art that is unbelievably captivating. Juniper introduces some of the flowers, then takes them behind the greenhouse, into a large curtained area, with a massive white canvas draped over-top like a circus tent, except it's as big as the greenhouse, but slightly more narrow. Juniper parts the cloth at the entrance, allowing the group to enter. 

"Some plants don't like too much light, so I keep them in here. The cover parts up there," Juniper points to the roof. "Once each day, to give them just enough sunlight to sustain them through the night."

She has flowers for every occasion. Some that calm, some that agitate, some that incapacitate - most of which aren't even species known to the rest of the world; uniquely contrived and mutated by Juniper's gifted intuition and tender loving care.

They head back the way they came, arriving at the cluster of girls' dormitory buildings.

"Our classes are over there," Constance gestures towards the elementary education building a distance away, straight ahead. "But you already know that. Let's go down this way," she points to her left, then looks at the others. "We can take her to The Terrain."

"The Terrain?" Debbie asks.

"It's where we had our types classes yesterday," Rose explains. "You only saw a little bit of the forest. There's plenty of other scenic things in there - high grounds and little ponds. It's one of the best things about the school being located outside the city."

"Jun, you got the tranquiliser dust ready?" Constance asks, referring to the bag of sleeping lily pollen Juniper carries around as protection. Anyone or anything that breathes it in falls unconscious instantly. "In case we run into any unwanted guests."

"Tammy's friends," Rose clarifies. "The pollen will knock them out long enough for us to get away - if it comes to that, but Gemini usually has everything under control."

They go through the track and the field where they had their PE lesson in order to get to the far end of the school. When Debbie steps onto the grass where they'd played soccer, bad memories come flooding back. The fire, the fear, the fury. The horrible look in Lou's eyes. Debbie blinks hard, turns her head to force the image away. The Terrain covers a large stretch, but they enter where Rose and Debbie did the day before.

"The front stretch here is all forest, down this line. The trees act as some kind of a barrier so the animals aren't tempted to start running around the school. Tammy keeps them tamed for the most part, but this is just an extra precaution."

They walk through the woods, and Debbie can tell when the trees start getting more sparse, the vegetation less dense, before they step out into open space. The ground is flat dirt, running forward until it hits a raised fence that curves around the area that holds the raised, rougher terrain that imitates a mountainous landscape. The lock for the entryway is installed slightly above Debbie's height, intentionally out of reach of the younger students. Then, they have to walk through a mechanical scanner. In the event one of the lower elementary students manage to sneak their way past the fence, the metal gate behind it will be triggered to lock when they walk through the scanner.

"It's fail-safe," Gemini says, reaching a hand up as she stops before the fence. She knocks on the space above it, and although it looks like she's knocking on air, Debbie hears a muffled thumping sound. "Invisible barrier, in case the young ones try to jump or fly over."

"We have kids under five years old in this school," Bianca adds from beside her. "It's extremely rare and there's only two right now, but I can't even imagine sending my five-year-old child to a boarding school."

"How do they even live on their own?"

"Every kid below seven is assigned a personal caretaker," Gemini says. "Those from seven to nine have volunteer high school students as mentors that check up on them every few days."

Gemini clears the scanner first, then pushes her way through the turnstile gate, and Debbie follows soon after. It takes a while because they have to do it one at a time, but while she's waiting for everyone to come through, Debbie studies the view before her in unadulterated awe. The dirt under her feet continues for a couple more metres before it transitions gradually into stony granite, then further still into slopes and stacks of rocks that lead upwards to raised platforms of higher ground. They remind Debbie of Pride Rock from The Lion King. At the thought, her brain starts to automatically replay the scene of Rafiki lifting baby Simba up on the highest point of the incline. She can almost hear the trumpet of the elephants and screech of the monkeys from the movie in her mind. That is, until her eyes fixate on a tiny figure at the peak where Rafiki should be.

It’s a mere cluster of colours because they’re still quite far away, but Debbie, with her 20/20 vision, can semi-distinctly make out the figure of someone seated on the edge of the platform, legs dangling precariously over thin air. This is the first person they’ve seen in The Terrain in the past hour of exploring. Debbie turns around as Dom rejoins their circle, then starts walking forward alongside Gemini when everyone’s come through.

“Oh, Lou’s up there,” Constance says suddenly.

Debbie finds Constance’s eyes instantly and turns just in time to see the bright, fiery amber fade back to black in her irises. She chases Constance's line of sight back to the figure she’d been staring at. It still doesn’t look particularly recognisable to Debbie, but she supposes human eyesight could never hold a candle to fox vision, no matter how perfect the optometrist says hers is. Everyone else seems to tense, glancing at Rose.

“We can leave if you want,” Juniper says softly to Rose, lips curling slightly in a reassuring smile. A yell of protest rings in Debbie’s head.

She’s spent more than 24 hours in a war against herself, trying to fight the desperation to see the blonde again, and now that Lou’s finally back within reach, a part of Debbie doesn’t ever want to let her out of her sight again.

“No, I’m all right.”

And Debbie could suffocate Rose with a hug right now, though of course she doesn’t because even the thought of externalising that much of herself sounds absolutely exhausting, and so utterly unlike her. They keep walking, and Debbie’s way too focused on making out Lou’s defining features to notice Gemini glancing over at her. When she finally starts to see familiarity, she notices that Lou’s already staring back at them, watching them approach. Surprisingly, she doesn’t get up to leave. And here Debbie thought Lou was avoiding her. When they come to a stop right under her hanging feet, Debbie can even make out the smirk on Lou’s lips, so incredibly similar to the one she’d had when they’d first met.

“Hey Lou,” Gemini greets in her normal voice, and for a second Debbie thinks it’s too soft for Lou to hear from way up there, forgetting that Lou’s hearing is even sharper than Constance’s when she wants it to be.

Lou raises her brows with a smirk, nodding her head in response. She isn’t sure if it’s intentional, but Debbie swears Lou’s been looking at everyone but her.

“What are you doing up there?” Gemini asks.

Lou shrugs.

“Don’t you know, Gem?" The mock in Kiara's tone is clear as day. "Cats like high places. And some people... are just that. Pussies.” She scoffs when she spits the word out, voice dripping with venomous sarcasm.

“Kiara!” Gemini chastises, and everyone is just as taken aback by the crude insult, a heinous word that makes them feel dirty just by hearing it.

Debbie clenches her jaw, turning back up to catch Lou’s reaction. From where she’s standing, Debbie can’t see a significant difference at all, except that Lou isn’t looking at them anymore.

“Lou,” Debbie whispers with her exhale so the others don’t hear her. The Australian meets her eyes immediately, and Debbie blinks up at her, a silent conversation wafting between them over the distance. After a second, Lou gets up, dusts her jeans off and jumps, landing softly beside Debbie. She lets the silence drag out a little.

“Sorry about Thursday, Rose,” Lou breaks the silence without acknowledging Kiara’s comment.

“Th-That’s okay,” Rose says quietly.

“No, it isn’t.” Kiara takes Rose’s elbow and tugs her to her side. “You almost killed her. Sorry doesn’t cut it, Lou.”

Rose squeezes her elbow, frowning in a bid to get Kiara to drop it.

“What do you want me to say then, Kiara?” Lou drawls in a mild sigh. “I can’t undo the past; I can only apologise. And if Rose can accept that, why can’t you?”

Kiara grits her teeth in anger, but another sharp nudge from Rose jolts her out of it. Her lips press into a tight line, then soften into the tiniest of pouts when Dom and Rose lay a hand on her arm and back respectively. “You don’t even sound remorseful,” Kiara mutters, but at this point it’s more out of stubbornness than spite. Even with the vulgar insult, Debbie can’t find it in her to hate Kiara because she’s just fiercely protective of her friends that way. And Debbie knows Lou understands, even seems to find it slightly endearing, probably because she recognises that someone as passive as Rose could actually use the shield and loyalty of bold friends.

“I am,” Lou says simply, lips quirked in a patient smirk. She turns to look at Rose, and Rose nods after studying Lou’s features for a moment. Underneath the mirth, the playfulness, Lou makes her sincerity discernible. And when she sees it, Kiara’s frown finally starts to melt into a more neutral expression, reassured by the way Rose's anxiety seems to be subsiding.

"Lou. Ms Xenia gave us homework to do over the weekend. It's due Monday."

Lou's hand brushes Debbie's when she turns towards Gemini, and Debbie draws her hand to her side, feeling the warmth spread across the strip of skin right above her knuckles.

"I'll drop by tonight to get it. 10pm?"

"Actually... Debbie has it," Gemini lies smoothly, and Debbie wants to frown in confusion but decides to play along instead. Lou narrows her eyes at Gemini, who shrugs casually like nothing's amiss. "I rushed off to get food before types."

"10pm is perfect," Debbie says from behind Lou, and Gemini raises her twinkling eyes to Debbie's, smiling at her over Lou's shoulder.

"Fine," Lou sighs after a while, turning to face Debbie. "10pm." She barely makes eye contact, definitely doesn't sustain it, and starts to walk away towards the exit before anyone can say anything else. Debbie has to hold herself back from stopping Lou, because even with the promise of seeing her again in a few short hours, Debbie can't be sure Lou will keep to it. And she really doesn't want to spend another night caught in a helpless whirlwind of wondering when she'll see the blonde again, because now that they’ve agreed, any time past 10pm tonight seems far too long a wait for Debbie.

When Lou leaves, they continue the tour down the rest of The Terrain, where there are ponds and mini river streams and all sorts of vegetation, but Debbie’s focus only really shifts back when they stumble upon a baby bear by the waters. It’s alone, and excited to see them, which is a deadly combination because when it’s mother shows up, and she will, they’ll have a lot more on their hands than they might be confident to handle. The cub comes running, flailing its arms wildly as it forces short bursts of noises from its throat.

As Gemini raises her hand, the worst of their nightmares begin. The biggest creature Debbie’s ever seen crawls out from behind the trees, growling a hoarse call for the cub to come back to her side. The cub turns around, yelps a few times and jumps back, like it’s confused. After a second call from the big grizzly bear, the cub bounds over, and Gemini gives the cue to start backing away slowly, all of them breaking off into a sprint once they are a safe distance away.

“Was that a real mother bear, or...?” Bianca asks breathlessly when they’re past the forest and back on the school field. 

“No,” Gemini says with a hand over her heart, pressing it down so it doesn't burst out of her ribcage. “Just needed to get the cub to turn around.”

Debbie looks up from where she's bent over, trying to catch her breath. “That was one of your illusions?”

“The big bear, yeah.”

“It looked so real,” Debbie pants out in awe.

“I’m surprised you could even see it. I thought your nullification would’ve kicked in from the stress.”

Debbie shrugs, pushing her palms against her knees to get herself upright again. “I trust Tammy to have a hold on her animals.”

They grab an early dinner, another big feast of shared foods since they all missed lunch, and by the time they’re done chatting and on their way back, the sky outside is darkened from the setting sun.

When she gets back to her room, she hardly has time to settle herself down before there’s a knock on her door. Her first thought is Lou, but it turns out to be Gemini, coming to hand over Lou’s empty sheets of homework. Debbie doesn’t ask why Gemini told Lou the homework was already with her, doesn’t want to because she expects, to some level, an uncomfortably revealing conversation that forces Debbie to acknowledge and confront feelings she isn’t ready to deal with. So she thanks Gemini, accepts a gentle pat on her arm from the girl, and sends the perceptive class president on her way.

Debbie keeps an eye on the clock all night. She’s done with her shower by half past eight, sets down to doing her math homework by nine, and gets up to about half of it by the time there’s another knock on the door. She looks up to see that it's five minutes to ten, stands to brush her black pajamas down with her hands, and combs her fingers through her hair to neaten it. When she opens the door, she thinks she sees Lou's breath catch.

"You're early," Debbie says.

Lou bites on her lower lip from the inside, shrugging, and Debbie immediately senses the familiar tension buzzing between them already. It gives Debbie the best kind of butterflies in her stomach.

"Is my homework actually with you?"

Debbie opens the door wider as invitation for Lou to enter, and heads back inside. The lack of shuffling footsteps behind her makes her turn around, half-sitting half-leaning on the edge of her dining table with her palms pressed onto the wooden top. She stares at Lou, lifting her brows as if to say: _you coming?_

Lou's sigh is soft and resigned as she makes her way in and closes the door behind her, but Debbie can tell it's more nerves than actual reluctance. And in spite of that, Lou still comes much closer to her than Debbie expects, though not quite as close as she usually does. They hold each other's gaze.

"You didn't come to class yesterday," Debbie says slowly, breaking the silence.

It's a statement, without any semblance of a questioning tilt in her tone, but Lou knows Debbie's waiting for a response. She stares at Debbie, testing replies in her mind, and almost takes long enough for the silence to take a turn right back into nerve-wrecking territory. Eventually, the corner of her lips quirk up in a slight smirk.

"Miss me?" she says, and Debbie is almost fooled by the display of confidence, almost - but for some reason, she knows exactly where to look to find the diluted hint of anxiety Lou tries so hard to hide.

“I was worried.” Lou’s eyes flit away at Debbie's confession, landing on the partition wall behind her. Debbie blinks heavily. “We didn’t exactly part on a light note,” she reminds in a gentle, nudging kind of way.

“It was a rough day.”

Debbie nods slowly in understanding. “Does it still hurt?”

She uses both palms to push herself off the edge of the table, reaching one hand out towards Lou’s face as she steps forward. She hesitates when she gets closer, index finger hovering over the center of Lou’s forehead, right above the spot between her eyebrows. She's afraid of hurting Lou, doesn't ever want to feel Lou flinching from beneath her fingertips again. Lou assures her by closing the minuscule distance, inclining her head forward so the pad of Debbie's index finger pokes her forehead softly.

Debbie melts into a smile, relief flooding her system. She keeps her finger on Lou's skin, relishing in the contact that almost doesn't feel real. An entire day of wondering how on earth she could be so desperate to see one singular person again - right out the window. With Lou back in front of her, it's no wonder at all. Lou takes her hand, bringing it down to their side when she realises Debbie isn't planning on moving it herself. Her thumb brushes over Debbie's third knuckle, leaving a familiar warmth in its wake as she meets Debbie's eyes again, gauging her reaction. Debbie tenses her fingers on reflex, surprised by the sudden prickling on her skin.

"How do you do that?"

"Tiny little flames close to your skin cells."

"Could I get burnt?" Debbie asks, bringing their hands up to study her skin. There isn't the slightest hint of red from a flame.

Lou chuckles. "Not on my watch."

A pause, and Debbie releases her hold on Lou's hand. “You need to stop rebelling,” she says, as steadily as she can.

That causes Lou’s brows to crease in a frown but lift in confusion.

“They won’t punish you if you just stick to the rules,” Debbie explains. 

The scoff Lou forces out sounds more like an bitter chuckle. "You would think that, wouldn't you?" she mutters under her breath, eyes ablaze with resentment.

Debbie regards her with furrowed brows, taking her words in. "You mean-"

"Is that it?" Lou asks suddenly, pointing at the sheets of paper on the table behind her. She reaches for it, but Debbie slams her palm onto the thin stack of paper and pushes it out of her reach. She glares at Lou, not amused by her attempt at changing the subject. Lou glares back, refusing to give in. Debbie obliges her in switching topics, mentally reminding herself to circle back to that conversation when Lou's a little less on edge.

"Why didn't you answer the door this morning?"

"You went to my room?"

"I was worried," Debbie says again, firmer this time. "Did you not hear me knocking?"

Lou shakes her head. "I was out."

"At nine in the morning?"

Lou shrugs. "Early riser."

"Oh, then how about breakfast tomorrow? We can study together after."

Lou blinks, holding back a groan of disbelief. She got herself into that one. Should've known better.

"9am, your room?" Debbie continues before Lou even answers her. She grabs the papers from behind her, holding it out towards Lou, taking her silence as consent. "See you."

Lou lets her sigh out then, taking the homework from Debbie in resignation. "Goodnight, Debbie."

Debbie watches as Lou retreats, actively pulling herself back from the temptation to reach out and keep the blonde a little while longer. Her vague answer of non-agreement fills Debbie with doubt, as much as she tries her best to hide it with smooth self-assurance. When Lou finally leaves and Debbie hears the door shut fully with a soft click, she exhales the breath she's been holding and slumps into the chair beside her. She wonders to herself: when did breathing get this hard?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi! I know it's been a while, but I hope you guys enjoy this new update. lots more baby Lou to come. let me know any comments you might have because reading your messages makes me smile. thank you so much!


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